Hello
by Isnotamusedsir
Summary: Inspired by the song Hello by Evanescence, Rick's 15 year old daughter suffers from blindness, due to a car accident she and her mother were in a year prior to the out break. Whilst at the CDC, the unbelievable happens.
1. Chapter 1

Preface

The saying "One moment can change your life forever" wasn't one I really acknowledged as something important. But I was wrong. And, it was too late to react when the time of distress came. It was faster than the speed if lightning.

I never desired anything. I had a simple family. My father was a police officer, and my mother stayed at home. I had a little brother, too. He looked like my mom. I was a splitting image of my parents.

I was tall like the both of them, my facial features were a lot like my mother's, only younger. I was born with light brown hair like my dad, but from years of accumulated sun, it had a blonde tint to it. I had my mother's beautiful brown eyes.

I was a straight A student since fifth grade. I had plenty of fun friends. Lived in a beautiful home in King County, Georgia.

But those people I called 'friends' wanted nothing to do with me after the accident. I suffered ridicule from what happened to me. I was taken out of most of my classes to rework my life, being in new classes for the needy. Not because I was dumb, or disfigured. Almost not disfigured.

Still to this day, a year later, I find myself blaming my mother for what happened to me. In truth, it really _was_ her fault. And mine.

At age 14, I was in a car accident with my mother. It was late at night. I was at a party, and I discovered that my friends had stolen alcohol from their parents. I called my mother to pick me up. My father would kill me if he knew I was drinking, which I most certainly wasn't.

My mother came to pick me up. We were about a mile from King County, in the mountains. The party had been in an old abandoned barn, five miles from town. Like I said, the moment was fast. A man on the oncoming lane was driving like a mad man. His car was black, and the headlights were off.

Unaware of the vehicle, my mother kept driving. Before we knew it, our car was flipped and totaled. My mother was left with the damage of a broken arm. However, I had greater issues. The shards of glass from the windshield flew at me. The glass ripped my eyes apart. I remember how loud I was screaming.

Panicked, my mother called my father. I remember her cussing as she dropped the phone while she tried to dial with one hand. My father arrived in less than five minutes along with his best friend, Shane Walsh, and an ambulance.

I remember my father picking me up, both of us sobbing.

I remember him stroking my blood soaked face and hair.

I remember the swirling in my head.

I remember the searing pain.

I remember the darkness.

On that night, March 17th, 2009, I lost my eyesight due to the glass. I was blind. My parents couldn't afford transplants.

I was lucky to be alive.

Now, the year was 2010. I still hadn't adjusted to this new lifestyle. My family and I stopped going to church. We hardly bonded. Most of the time I just sat or paced around my room.

Then, my father was shot and comatose.

Then, Apocalypse broke out. My father is dead. All I have is my mother, my brother, and my father's best friend. I don't even know why I'm writing any of this down. Not like anyone will read it.

I didn't have the chance to write any of this until a miracle happened.

My name is Lucile Grimes, and this is my story.

_**Chapter 1**_

We were up at an old rock quarry. Everyone had jobs. Except for me… I couldn't keep watch. I wouldn't be able to see anything coming. I couldn't gather plants from the forest. Odds were I'd bring back poisonous mushrooms or poison ivy and end up killing us all. How nice. A large group of survivors in a zombie Apocalypse killed by an idiot blind girl when she accidentally fed she and her friends poisonous plants.

So… Here I am. Sitting in my tent. Doing nothing but crying. Yes, blind people can cry. Welcome to my life.

Never in my life had I felt so… so… Useless.

My own crying distracted me. I didn't notice the tent flap opening.

"Honey, are you okay?"

It was my mother.

"No. Can't I help with anything?" I asked.

"I'm afraid not…"

"This is ALL your fault! I spat at her, "I hate you! You're a shitty mother! This never would've happened if-"

"Lucile! Watch your tongue! If your father could hear you-"

"WELL HE CAN'T!" I interrupted. "HE'S DEAD!" I couldn't believe what I said. It all just… Popped into my head.

Angrily, I pushed past my mother. I just started aimlessly walking around camp, with utterly no idea whatsoever where I was going. I missed my father. I wished he were here. I wish I could've died that night. That way we'd be together. It would have saved me a hell lot of trouble.

I hated my mother. Ever since the accident, she had people doing 'nice' things for me. I hated that, too. I hated being dolled over. And the thing is, we got along so well before.

While I was walking, I could feel everyone looking at me. Their eyes were burning into my soul. We had all been up here for four weeks. We sent a small group of people to Atlanta for supplies. That was a day ago, and they still aren't back.

Due to my blindness, the eldest Dixon brother, Merle, would always touch me. I wouldn't see it coming. Shane would tell him off, and guide me back to my tent, where I would cry my _blind_ eyes out. I would lie against his chest as he stoked my back. Like my father used to do. Being touched by complete strangers like Merle was something else I hated. That, and being taken advantage of.

Shane and I never got along prior to my accident. We bickered whenever he came over. After I lost my eyesight, he became my best friend. He stuck up for me when people made fun of my eyesight. The large sunglasses I had to wear were terrible. They were heavy.

And Shane was there when my mother wasn't. It was then, when I was strolling along, a loud car alarm blared in the distance. I stopped moving, trying to pinpoint where the sound was coming from. It was coming closer by the second.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. I recognized it as Shane. I heard a door open and shut, and people started shouting at each other. Shane let go of my shoulder. I couldn't see what he was doing. The alarm stopped, and I felt someone brush past me. The voice told me it was Amy, arguing at Glenn.

"Is everyone here?" I asked.

"No, but they'll be here soon," Glenn said. "Well, except for Merle."

Good, that asshole was gone.

I heard a larger vehicle- probably a supply truck- pull up. I figured it was everyone else. I didn't want to hear all of these families reuniting, so I ran off.

I found myself stumbling into the RV. I only knew that from what I felt around me. I walked down the hallway, tripping on the carpet as I did. I slowly got up, and heard someone calling my name. I sighed, and found my way out of the RV. I stared out with my grey blank stare.

"What?" I asked quietly.

I heard footsteps walking towards me that sounding like cowboy boots. The heels clacked off the gravel, fast. A pair of familiar strong arms wrapped around me. For the first time in a year, I felt happy. Instantly, I knew who it was.

"Dad!"

**AN: I will not update this until I finish Ember. Sorry. Merry Christmas, Kwanza, Hanukah. This is my present to you. The preface and first chapter of my second TWD story. **


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: I couldn't stop myself from doing this…. Push goes to shove how much I love all of you. I got some ideas, and I knew I would forget them.**

_**Chapter 2**_

_ "How are they?" Rick frantically asked the doctor. _

_ "Your wife will be fine; just a concussion and a broken arm. As for your daughter… There's no easy way to say it, but-"_

_ "No! She… she… she can't be… No…" Rick sobbed and cupped his face with his hands. "What will tell Carl?" He pondered aloud._

_ "Mr. Grimes- Rick- she isn't dead. However… The glass from the windshield ripped both of her corneas. The total damage of both eyes was great. Both of the eye's ciliary bodies, the iris's, lens, aqueous, and sclera were destroyed. Transplants would be…. Extreme cost. Insurance won't be able to cover it."_

"Dad! I can't believe it's you! I thought… I thought…" _I thought you were dead._ I was unable to hold back the tears, and I buried my face into his shoulder, trying to hide the embarrassment knowing that people were watching.

"I'm here Lucy Lu. Daddy's here." My father sobbed with me, and spun me around. I shrieked in delight as he did, and I ignored my sunglasses that slid off of my face. I felt like a little girl again. My father would come home from spending eight hours risking his life. I would hear the door screeching off the floor, and I would run to him. He'd spin me around like just now. He'd call me "Lucy Lu", and I would kiss him on the cheek as he'd ruffle my hair.

I had never felt so happy then, knowing each day… He was safe.

Until the accident.

But now.

I was happy again.

More arms joined us. I felt a smaller head trying to push through my father and I. "Carl." I moaned. I could hear him snickering, so I playfully smacked him, not sure where. I heard an "Ouch!", pleasing me greatly.

My mother was the other person who joined in on our family reunion. She laughed out of joy, and the four of us fell to the ground, like we were playing Ring Around the Rosy.

This was the first time in weeks that I let my mother hug me. However, it still bothered me; feeling her warm breath on my arm as we embraced my father.

Honestly…

It felt comforting.

Good.

It made me feel… safe.

XXX

That night, our large group huddled around the fire pit, trying to absorb as much of the heat as we could. Damn, was it cold. My father told us all how he found us. I was amazed at his bravery. I felt proud to be his daughter.

Any thoughts I had about being dead were erased that night. I thought of my father… How he'd find the group, only to have my mother breaking the news. And after all the hell he's been through, I couldn't put him through that.

I sat there, curled up next to my father, snug as a bug. But I was still cold. My mother was on the other side of him, and Carl was sitting on top of the wool blanket my mother had stretched over the three of us. Carl had his own blanket on, and listened just as intently as I did while hearing our father's story

The wool of the blanket dug into my skin like razors, so I was constantly rubbing and scratching my arms. My sunglasses fell off of my face again, this time it bothered me. I gripped the frames, and pushed them back onto my face. The damn things fell off again

"You damn piece of sh-"

"Honey," my father said, pulling me closer. "You don't need to wear them, you know."

"But… Everyone will make fun of my eyes!" I sobbed.

"No, they won't." He said, kissing my forehead. "Will y'all make fun of Lucy if you see her eyes?" He asked everyone aloud. I heard a mixture of "No's", and I hung my head. "See? You'll be fine."

"But my eye's are ugly."

"No they're not. They're the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen." I smiled, and pushed the sunglasses off of the blanket. I felt a wave of guilt sweeping over me, remembering that I had just sworn right in front of my family.

"Hey Ed," I heard Shane say. "Mind rethinking that log?"

"Why? It's damn cold." The other man said.

"C'mon man, you know the rules. We keep our fires to a minimum so we can't be seen from a distance."

"Why don't you mind your own business; For once."

I blocked out the rest of the argument my best friend and that narcissistic dick happened to be having. On a good day, too. I didn't realize how tired I was until I caught myself leaning on top of Carl. He giggled, and pinched my cheek, causing me to jolt up like a horse.

"Woah woah now Carl. You know better than to pick on Lucile." Lori warned.

"But mom! She hit me earlier!"

My eyelids grew heavy, and I sunk to the side as my father stood up. "I'm gonna take her back to the tents."

"Alright. Ours is the one on the far right." My mother told him. I felt a pair of arms lift me up, and I rested my head on my father's shoulder.

"I missed you." I truthfully told him.

"I missed you, too Lucy Lu."

My father put me down so he could unzip the tent flap, and picked me up again. I felt his arms go out from under me as my head gently hit the pillow of my cot. My father placed a kiss on my forehead, bid me goodnight, and left the tent.

I couldn't believe he was here. Shane… That bastard lied to us. I reminded myself to give him a strict talking to tomorrow. For now, I just shut that idea away as I drifted off.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: I haven't updated in awhile, Guest, because I've been busy. It wasn't for reviews. Nice try… I did say I wouldn't update this as often. You guys need to give the story a chance. So, I'll admit something. I'm in Junior High. And you know what, I write better than most people my age do. **

**And for all of you wondering "How the hell does a blind woman write a story of her life?" Helen Keller did….**

**Well, sorry for the wait. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Yes, it will have a WTF moment, but meh… **

_**Chapter 3**_

"You can't be serious. _Merle Dixon?_" My mother spat at my father. For the past few minutes, they've been arguing about my father going back to Atlanta for Merle Dixon.

"Mom…"

"No, he isn't worth it."

"_Mom!"_

My mother opened her mouth to yell at my father again, but before she could, Shane's voice snapped into the picture. "Water's here, y'all." I heard the scuffle of feet as everyone rushed forward. "Just remember; boil before use."

"I plan on returning for him." My father said. "That's final."

"Atlanta. You _just _got back, and you're going to leave me and the kids."

"Mom! Knock it off!" I snapped. " If it was you, I sure as hell know you'd want someone to rescue you!"

"No. I wouldn't be stupid enough to get myself _handcuffed_ to a _roof_!"

"Yeah, well you've done some pretty _stupid_ things in the past." I shot back. I wasn't just talking about the car accident. I meant her sleeping with Shane.

"MOM!"

A chorus of young voices screamed together. "Carl! Carl baby!" My mother cried out. Everyone rushed past me, eager to find the source of the distress.

"C'mon baby- let's get you into the RV." I heard Jacqui, the African American woman saying to me. She gently gripped my shoulder, and we walked to the RV with the children and mothers.

Jacqui pushed me ahead once we reached the steps, but unfortunately my foot caught on the bottom step, and I fell flat on my face onto the carpeted floor.

"Oh honey," I heard Jacqui exclaim. "I'm sorry! Are you alright?"

"Yeah. Thanks, but I'm fine." I replied as she helped me up off the floor. "After all, I've been through a lot worse." That was directed at my mother, whom I was sure was just gawking like an idiot at me.

"I appreciate your care, Jacqui. It means a lot more to me than my mother's poor excuse."

XXX

"Daryl Dixon's back…" My father mumbled to me as he sat across from me in the RV.

"Figured…"

"So… About me going back to Atlanta-"

"Don't Dad." I interrupted. "I know that no matter what, you're still going. And… I think you should. Drug dealer, racist, narcissistic redneck or not… He doesn't deserve to suffer."

"Alright. Well, me and Daryl finalized the idea. We're going back. So is T-Dog and Glenn." He said.

"Good luck Dad… Y'know… an extra pair of hands never hurt…" I said, giving off the hint that I wanted to come along. My father chuckled, and ruffled my hair.

"I'd love to, but-"

"I'm blind… Yeah."

"I just don't want you to get hurt."

"Please! It'd be like when I was little and you took me on road trips to the city to see the aquariums… Only without aquariums, undead freaks instead."

"What about Mom?" My dad questioned. I scowled at him, and crossed my arms over my chest.

"I highly doubt Lori cares what happens to me…"

"Well…"

"C'mon Dad! I'll have people who can use a gun with me!" I tried to persuade him. "I could even use a gun-"

"The last thing I need is for you to misfire and kill one of us."

"A knife-"

"Fine!" My father said, laughing as he did. "You truly are my kid."

"Are you saying Carl isn't?" I asked, meaning to sound sarcastic. However, it came out more on the serious side, and I feared it hurt my father.

"Just give him some time."

XXX

"You're taking our daughter with you! Are you insane!" My mother screamed when she spotted me climbing into the back if the utility truck.

"Lori-" My dad started. I heard the sound of flesh hitting flesh, and I froze.

"No. I don't except this! She's blind! She could get killed!"

"Did you just hit me?" My father snapped. "She isn't a little girl! She wants to help!"

"So your idea is to bring her on a suicide mission!" My mother continued shouting it him. It pained and frightened me to have to listen to them, and I knew everyone was either looking at me or them.

"I wanted her to get some experience!"

With that, my parents stopped arguing, and the camp fell silent. "Your ma's crazy." I heard Daryl say from behind me. I felt his breath on my back as he gripped my arm, helping me up.

"Tell me about it…"

I found my way to the passenger's seat, and slid down into the sun-heated leather. The heat burned through my shirt, licking my back, but I didn't really care.

"C'mon!" I heard Daryl shout. "I ain't got all day!"

Within the next five minutes, my father, T-dog, and Glenn finished biding fair well to the group, and piled into the truck. I jumped, startled as the engine turned on, but quickly relaxed.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" My father asked me. "You can always back out. I won't hold it against you."

"No. Don't worry Dad, I'm fine." I told him, giving off a reassuring smile as I did.

**AN: Oh lookie, Lucile is going to Atlanta… **


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Hehe, didn't expect me to update so soon, did you? Enjoy this chapter, or else I will sacrifice a squirrel. Jk, I wouldn't do that…. :3**

_**Chapter 4**_

"We're here." My father stated, turning off the growling engine.

I heard the sound of my group my group walking on the gravel, and I fumbled with the latch to open the door. Piling out, I took notice of the faint smell of what was in the air I inhaled. Decay and death, which I wasn't that bothered by. Honestly, I was more worried of getting taken than of Walkers.

Strange, I know…

"Lucy," My heard my father call. "Here." I found my way towards him, and felt a leathery pouch being pressed into my hands. It was a small sheath. "Be careful with that."

"I will Dad. Thanks."

"If were ain't ok…" Daryl muttered.

"Trust me." T-Dog insisted. "The geeks can't get through."

I held onto my father's arm as we walked along, below a highway overpass. Despite no more cars driving on the strip, additionally to the decaying smell, was the heavy smell of diesel. I wrinkled my nose, having never been able to stand the smell of fumes. My father took notice, and tapped my shoulder. "You ok?" He asked. I nodded my head.

"Merle or the guns first?" He asked out loud.

"Merle's closest-" Glenn began, but Daryl cut him off.

"There ain't no debate. Merle."

"We should get the guns first." I stated. "What if we encounter something pretty nasty in there?"

"Lucile's right." I heard T-Dog say.

"You two shut up!" Daryl snapped at us. "That's my brother!"

"Besides; going for the guns would mean doubling back" Glenn added.

XXX

My father led us to a department store, and I shuddered as I heard a low growling. I was startled by the sound of a gun- wait, no, a crossbow- going off, followed by a loud thud ad "Ugly skank."

We continued slipping our way through the store. There weren't any more Walkers waiting to bite our faces off. We pushed through a door, and the air grew cold. I figured we were in a stair well due to, well, stairs. As we climbed the stairs, Daryl was shouting his brother's name the whole time, both eagerness and worry built into his shaky voice.

At the top of the stairs, I crossed my arms, waiting for T-Dog to cut through the chain on the door, leading out onto the roof. I heard a number of gasps, and felt my father pulling me behind him.

"No! No! No!" Daryl screamed. "Merle! _Merle!_"

Well, shit.

"Stay put." My father whispered in my ear. I felt the weight of his back against my torso disappear, only to be replaced by a faint breeze. I presumed he was going towards the ranting redneck.

I heard a gun clicking, and my father growling at Daryl. "I don't care if every Walker in the city hears me shoot. I won't hesitate."

Daryl didn't say anything for the time being, but finally, he did. "You got a do-rag?" He asked aloud.

The rooftop fell silent with the exception of scuffling feet and a zipper being pulled open and shut. I felt a hand latch onto my arm, but it wasn't my father's. "C'mon." Glenn said, ushering me forward. "Watch your step."

"What happened?" I question as we walked across the roof and into the opposite side of the store.

"Merle… Cut off his hand. We're following his blood trial."

Oh God…

Daryl shot another Walker, and we all stopped. "Merle must've taken these two out one-handed." He said. Following the blood trail again, we stopped once more. The sweet, sour smell of burning flesh along with stale bread hung in the air. I bent over, vomiting what little food was left in my stomach from this morning.

"Nobody can kill Merle but Merle." I heard Daryl state.

Glenn tugged on my shirt, and we walked in a huddle, crunching glass under our shoes as our feet made contact with the ground.

"Merle must've bashed through the window and left through the fire escape." T-Dog observed. That explained the glass.

"Alright. Me and Daryl will search the streets for Merle." My father said. "You three in?"

"Only if we get the guns first." T-Dog scoffed. "I'm not strolling the streets on just my good intentions, ok?"

XXX

"Daryl will watch my back from the store's alley. Lucy should stay with him." Glenn ordered. "Rick and T-Dog; you guys cover the second alley two blocks away. Either way, I'll have a safe place to run."

"Hey kid, what'd you before all of this?" Daryl asked.

"Delivered pizzas." Glenn answered. "Why?"

With that Glenn, Daryl, and I climbed down the ladder to the alley. Glenn handed me his backpack while Daryl and I waited. A few minutes of silence passed, until I heard Daryl shouting. At first, I thought it was me he was yelling at, until I heard a second voice.

Moe voices joined in, so I scurried to get away. I pulled out my knife, but a pair of hands latched onto mine, and ripped the blade from my grasp. I wrestled against the person, but got distracted as I heard Glenn screaming. Suddenly, I was flipped on my stomach with my hands pinned to my back.

I felt the pain in the left side of my face as it was shoved against the asphalt. I snarled, and desperately tried to get myself out from beneath the person's crushing weight. I managed to scratch his or hers hands as they pined mine, but the person didn't seem to notice any pain. The person laughed, which drew me to the conclusion that it was a he. He spit on the bare side of my face.

Daryl's crossbow went off, and someone cursed in Spanish. "Grab the bitch and the Asian! C'mon! Let's go!" Someone else barked.

Instantly, and began to panic and scream. As my captor yanked me up off the ground, I swung my legs back at him. He began dragging me off. "Dad!" I screamed. "DAD! HELP ME!"

"LUCILE!" I heard my father frantically shout. "HEY! LET HER GO!"

I heard a car door open, and I was shoved in. I slammed onto someone's body, and began to sob. The person began stroking my hair, and a blood-curdling scream escaped my lips. "Lucy! Calm down." Glenn said as he stopped stroking my tresses. "We'll be ok! We'll be ok."

No we sure as hell were not.

My biggest fear was about to come true.

**AN: HAHA! SUCCESS!**


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: This will probably be the last chapter I post for a while so I can work on ****Ember****. **

**Warning. Contains sexual themes. **

_**Chapter 5**_

I didn't remember much about the car ride, other than numerous bumps in the roads and encountering Walkers. Glenn and I huddled against each other the whole time. I buried my head into his chest as he started raking my hair again.

One of the men had a gun aimed at us. If either of us made the wrong move; we'd be dead. I wanted my father. I wanted to be back home. Not the quarry. In King County. Our family pictures didn't belong in a box under my parent's cot. They belonged on the white walls of our cozy home.

"Hey blondie." I heard a man say to me. "Why don't you look here so I can get a better look at you pretty face." I didn't want to, but if I refused, I might get shot for that. I looked up.

"Over here." He said. I bit my lip, and adjusted my head again. "How hard is it to look at someone, you damn puta!"

"She's blind!" Glenn shouted. The man chuckled, and I felt a hand latching onto my cheekbone. I tried to pull away, but I felt the cold barrel of a gun up to my head.

"How old are you?" The man demanded. Now that I was closer, I could smell tobacco in his breath.

"F-fifteen." I stuttered. I was in no position to lie.

"Hmm. G's gonna like you." He stated. _G?_ "That Sheriff man. He your father?"

This time I refused to answer.

"Hey! Answer him!" The man holding the gun up to my head ordered. I remained silent, but a small yelp escaped my lips as he shoved the back of the gun into my skull.

"Hey!" Glenn yelled. "Leave her alone! She's just a kid!"

"Shut the hell up!"

I stifled a sob, and nodded my head at the man who asked the question. As I did, the barrel of the gun ground into my head. I felt the man pat my face, and I was released. I fell back into Glenn's chest.

"Alright," One of the men said. "Here we are. Blindfold them."

My arms burned at the tight grasp of our captor's arms. "She's blind. We don't need to." The men forced us through a number of twists and turns, until we finally stopped. I heard the screeching of a large door swinging opening, and the sounds of voices- all were male.

"Felipe. Jorge." Someone said. "Where's Miguel? Where are my guns?"

"They took him and the guns." The man holding my arms said.

"They?"

"These two belonged to a group." He answered. "We captured them, and they captured Miguel."

"We'll ransom them-"

"And." The bombing voice above me interrupted. I felt him jabbing my back. "This one's one of their daughters. She's blind, too."

"Alright. Bring them in to the storage room."

I had a hard time keeping up with the men as they pushed me along. The building we entered was warm, and smelled of sweat and stale food. I heard the sound of a pad lock, a light flicking on, and Glenn and I were thrown to the ground.

"Wait." The man who our captors were talking to said. "Give me the girl." I was lifted back off the ground, and walked out of the room. "Yeah… I'll use her separately." He said. "How old are you, sweetheart?"

"Fifteen. Please. Just let us go." I replied. I felt a hand smack across my head, and I stumbled forward. Luckily, I caught my footing. A man began dragging me across a tiled floor, and I was pushing on top of a springy mattress. A heard a door close and lock sliding into place. The leader of the group climbed on top of me, and I screamed.

"Shh." He ordered. I didn't, and he slapped me across the face. My head began to hurt, but I didn't give up. I attempted to push the man off, but he hit me again. This time, right in the nose. I felt warm blood dripping down from it, but I didn't think it was broken.

The man slid his hands up my torso, and latched onto my breasts. I blew up that moment, and lunged forward at the man, attempting to knock him off me. I slid off the bed, and fumbled my way for the door. I finally reached it, but before I could unlock it, the man pulled me back and shoved me to the ground.

He ripped my over shirt off, and then my camisole. I tried to shove him off again, however this time he was prepared. He caught my wrists, and twisted them until I begged him to stop. He did, and let them fall.

The last thing I remembered was his hand clutching around my throat, cutting off my windpipes.

XXX

I woke up on a cold floor. My whole entire body hurt, and a chill crawled up my spine. I felt pain in my stomach, and moved my hand to clutch it. I discovered than my clothing was still intact.

I began silently sobbing as I curled into a ball, feeling the hot orbs sliding down my face and into my hair. I heard a door opening, followed by a chorus of laughter and talking. An arm latched around my waist, and pulled me upwards. I was shoved up against a wall, and I felt my arms being twisted behind my back. A thick rope secured them into place, enabling me to so much as picking the knot. I felt a hot breath against my neck, and shuddered.

"Your pappi is here, joven dama."

"My father?" I asked.

"Si." I couldn't help but smiling. It was going to be all right. My father was going to save Glenn and I. "Por favor abra su boca." The man said.

"What?" I mumbled. The man chuckled in my ear, sending even more chills down my spine.

"Please open your mouth." He replied, laughing again. "C'mon, just trying to teach you a whole new language. You strike me as someone who took French." I nodded, and slowly opened my mouth. My lips were dry and cracked.

"So," the man said before doing anything. "If you're blind, how did you come to the city? Sure your pappi wouldn't let you."

"Well, he did amigo." I replied. "I wanted to have some father-daughter bonding. This… Isn't what I was inferring."

The man chuckled, and I felt a do-rag being placed inside my mouth and being knotted behind my head, over my hair. I bit down on the cloth, and allowed the man to take me out of the room I was locked in. I heard the sounds of people arguing, and felt a shift in the air on me as I was taken outside. A different man grabbed me, and aimed a gun into my temple.

"Your hija got very well acquainted." The leader of my captors said. "Isn't that right?" He added as he cupped my face. I yanked away from him, but as I was expecting, he slapped me.

"Back off, Guillermo!" I heard Daryl bark.

"What did you do to my daughter?" My father demanded. I heard Guillermo stifling a laugh.

"Your hija was very… Aparchurro in my bed." He was trying to piss my dad off, and it was working. "She has a very nice trasero and sencos."

"Hand her over." My father spat.

"I told you; you come back with Miguel and my bag of guns, everyone walks. Or you come back locked and loaded. We'll see which side spills more blood." Guillermo said.

Instantly, a man started dragging me back into the hide out. I pushed out of his grasp, trying to get to my father. The man latched onto me, and a muffled scream escaped my mouth as he punched me in the gut.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: I'm back! Gah, the router for the Internet was acting up. Ermahgerd, I came up with so many good ideas for when I get to season 3.**

**TONIGHT IS WALKING DEAD!**

**YOU READY FOR SOME ASS KICKING!**

_**Chapter 6**_

I screamed out from under the thick fabric of the handkerchief as the men drug me back inside. My gut was throbbing for having been punched, and I cringed as the sound of my father yelling at the men, crying out at them, rung fresh in my mind.

No. I'm not going to take this shit.

I'd sooner rot in hell.

Rubbing my face on my shoulder, I slid the cloth out from my mouth, and began shouting venomous curses at the Hispanic men. Some… I should not repeat. One of the bastards _laughed_. I didn't even flinch when I felt one of their hands lashing out at my face. I swung my leg out, kicking the very same man. I heard a grotesque crunching noise, fearing I had broken my foot.

Until I heard someone falling to the floor, sobbing in pain. I grinned in satisfaction, and swiftly brought my bound arms back, feeling the fabric of a shirt. I dug my nails into the cloth, making sure to penetrate through the flesh underneath it. Someone yelped, and shoved me to the floor.

I wasn't going to show them any fear.

In fact, it was more fun than anything.

My victory streak came to an end as one of them kicked me in the head. Instantly my word felt hazy. My head was buzzing, and I was too limp to protest as one of the men lifted me to my feet. I felt rough, sweaty hands grip my arms, and the heels of my feet were on fire as I was dragged over the hard floor. I was pretty sure they thought I was a rag doll, not a teenage girl.

The world stopped moving, well, at least I did. I thought of what G did to me. I thought about my mother's shenanigans. I thought of Carl. My father. I thought of the men in my life, of them being hurt. No, I had to keep fighting back.

I don't remember what happened next. It was like someone else was controlling me. I just remember spitting out curses at the men, on a never-ending link. I was like a broken CD. Repeating what I was saying, and, well obviously, broken.

A hot, searing pain flew through my shoulder. I didn't scream at first. I was too shocked. "You son of a bitch!" I shouted, desperately wanting to cup my injury. Well, I suppose this means I can join my father in the 'Getting Shot' club. Yippee.

"What the hell man!" G snapped. "What the hell!"

"I-I. My finger slipped, I swear!"

"Forget it! Get her to the home! _Now!_"

The home? Was that some kind of slang term for brothel? If it was. No. He defiantly meant home. I felt the rope, which bound my wrists together, being tugged. Instantly, the weight disappeared as the rope was cut. One of the men picked me up, carrying me bridal style. He started running, causing me to bob around in his arms like a fish. My shoulder burned, and a sobbed silently, wanting my father.

"Don't worry, chica," G said from the sides. "You were just grazed. Nothing to-"

"You. You _raped _me!" I screamed.

"No. I swear I didn't, believe me. I'll explain later. Right now, we need to get you patched up."

XXX

I never clenched my teeth so much in my life. Not even during the accident. The pain was expanding as rubbing alcohol was rubbed in the gunshot. The alcohol- now mixed with my blood- ran down my arm, curving over and around the many goose bumps adorning my skin.

Oh, and it turned out the 'home' was a nursing home. These people who kidnapped Glenn and me were also looking after the elderly.

My teeth began to hurt from putting too much pressure on them, so I turned to biting my lips. That helped, a little bit, until blood ran down from the bottom lip. So what…

XXX

"Now," G said after my shoulder was completely patched up. Surprisingly, it didn't hurt as much as I thought it would. After the alcohol I mean. "I was just trying to scare you into submission."

"Oh yeah?" I sneered. "I don't see how that means you had to touch me."

"As I was saying. I had no intention of harming you. I just wanted you to feel like it, so we could get some help out of you."

I hugged my knees. I don't care if he didn't actually do anything to hurt me. I still felt violated. God, what would my father say? "Did you hurt Glenn?"

"No." I couldn't tell if he was bluffing to make me feel better, or if he was telling the flat out truth.

"Are you going to kill us?"

Silence.

"G?" A voice sounded. I knew it was that asshole Felipe. I had a feeling he was the prick who shot- sorry, grazed- me.

"Hmm?"

"They're back. Jorge said he saw them coming."

"I want to see my father." I said.

"Sorry, chica." G said. "I can't let that happen-"

"Go to hell!" I snapped. "It's the least you can do after you lied to me!"

"Well…"

"_Please!_" I sobbed.

"No. I'm sorry."

That's it. I don't care if I rot in hell for this. I was probably already headed for Satan's realm. I lunged forward, knowing G was there because I heard him talking from in front of me. I ignored the pains in my shoulder as I attempted to strangle him. He tried to push me off, but I wouldn't budge through all the screaming and tears. I shrieked as someone grabbed my hair, yanking me off of the group leader.

"Lucy, listen to me." Guillermo said.

"How do you know my name!" I screamed.

"You told me…"

Oh.

"Just stay here. Get some rest."

I couldn't protest. I was tired from all the kicking and screaming. Felipe let go off my hair, allowing me to solemnly nod my head. Felipe helped me back onto the bed, and I curled into a fetal position. The room smelled of a cheap air freshener, the type you hang in cars. I heard the door to my small room being closed.

Now, what the common idiot would've done in that moment was bolting for the door. However, I wasn't (and still aren't) stupid. Running out in those halls meant I would probably, almost certainly, get shot. Again.

I shut my eyes, sighing, as my vision didn't really change due to the blindness. I wondered how the hell I was going to survive…

XXX

"Hey," A voice hissed in my ear. I swatted my hand out, wanting to be left alone. "C'mon."

"Get away." I mumbled.

"Lucy, c'mon!" I realized who it was.

"What, Glenn?"

"They're here. Your dad, Daryl, T-Dog…" He said. "We can go home."


	7. Chapter 7

_**Chapter 7**_

I rushed out of the room, holding Glenn's hand as he guided me out to my father. I couldn't see him, but I _knew_ he was right in front of me. Glenn let go of my hand, leaving it to drop at my side. Suddenly, I was in my father's arms, embracing him as he did me.

"I'm so glad you're ok." He said. I smiled, hugging him even tighter.

"Me too."

I weighed the options on whether or not I should tell my father about what Guillermo did to me… Of course, the man might entirely dismiss it, claiming all he did was hit me a few times. I felt my father's hand going up to my shoulder, patting me. He stopped, and lifted the gauze padding on my wound.

"What the hell did you do to my daughter?" My father demanded.

"It was a misfire," Guillermo started. "A few Walkers came by, and chicka here got in the way."

I was just about to flat out slap the man for lying, but… Maybe there really were Walkers. Not like I could see them, and I wasn't a damn bloodhound. I still wasn't pro to picking up the scent of decay, but I had some skill.

"What are these bruises from?" My father continued.

"Dunno. Your daughter got into a smack down with some of my men. Maybe that answers your question."

XXX

"Admit it." Glenn joked as we walked back to the cube van, everyone safe and sound. "You only came back to Atlanta for the hat."

I heard my father chuckled, and he ruffled my hair. I was beginning to hate having my hair touched like this… "Don't tell anybody."

"Just wait until I get a hold of Amy." I sarcastically added. "The two of us'll spread that like a wildfire."

"Hold up!" I heard Daryl shout, followed by a tense silence.

"Merle…"

"He's gonna be takin' some vengeance back to camp." Daryl predicted. "Be lucky you brought your kid with…"

"I don't see any other cars." T-Dog said.

"We gotta get back." Glenn said.

With that, latching onto my father's arm, we ran off into the hills, for what seemed to stretch into several hours. Actually, I'm pretty sure it was. The air began to chill, but us moving so fast and often seemed to just send the cold packing. It was strange… Hot, blazing days followed by freezing nights…

I could tell we were getting close to camp. I could smell fish frying, and the smoky smell from the fires… No, wait, smoke from guns.

I heard the screams and erupting shots as we charged back to camp. The men took off, leaving me in the dark. I ran around like a madman, unaware of where my family was, or what was going on.

I felt cold arms wrap around me, assuming it to be my father. "Dad? What's going- HELP ME!" I screamed at the top of my lungs as the person – no, Walker- bit into my shoulder.

I heard the swiveling sound of a single bullet fly past my face, followed by a warm feeling across my face. I was dead. It was over. I was bit, and I was going to die. I continued screaming… It was all I could do…

"**Mommy! Daddy! **" I sobbed, not giving a shit if I sounded like a child. I was bit for God's sake!

"Oh my God! My baby!" I heard my mother shout. Someone rushed over to me, and pulled me up from the cold ground as I continued to sob.

"Rick!" I heard Shane say- the person who was holding me. "Get over here, **now!**"

"Christ." My father said as he ran up to us. I felt myself being transferred from Shane's arms to his, and he sobbed like I was. I buried my head into his neck, wanting to kill someone. Anyone.

"Rick-" Dale said from behind me, startling me. The rest of the group was quiet, save one person, who was weeping in the background. "Let me take a look… Please."

I felt the old man brushing his hands along where I was bit. "Rick, you're lucky. This blood, yes here, is old. The bandage saved her life."

Wow… Saved by gauze and tape. Damn…

"I remember my dream now." Jim croaked. "Why I was diggin' those holes."

**AN: Sorry for the short chapter!**


	8. Chapter 8

_Guest- Rose_

_Hmm, I'm not really sure. No one's her age, and I don't really want to add another OC. If you think of anyone in particular, let me know ^^_

_I might start a poll for it. It just depends how everything plays out, I suppose._

_**Chapter 8**_

I'm pretty sure that the next near death experience is probably going to be my last… Whether I grow some balls or die. Either way would be fine. Yes, that sound dark, but… I just don't know how I'm supposed to stay alive. For Christ's sake, if I wasn't shot, nothing would have been covering my shoulder, and I'd be dead right now. Just like half of the camp, including Amy.

And thank God I wasn't a hemophiliac… Once, when I was seven, I was at my uncle Jeffery's house (My father's younger brother) during the Forth of July, and my older cousin tried to "drown" me in the pool. It was an in-ground, so when I pushed to get away, my cousin rammed my head into the cement pool wall.

Imagine spending the best day of the summer in the hospital getting stitches… I would've died then.

After that, I never really saw my uncle again, except for maybe on Christmas, and that was only for dinner. He used to come over every three years, but then that time stretched to five years. My mother said that after she and my father got married, they seldom saw each other. I'm suspecting jealousy…

And so, the day went on. The dead were buried or burnt, Amy turned- sadly, Andrea was the one to put her down. God, that makes her sound like an animal. Let me rephrase that… Allowing her to finally rest in peace. I guess that sounds… _better_. Yeah.

Oh, I almost forgot! Jim was bit in the attack, so my father wants to take us to the CDC – Center for Disease Control- here in Atlanta to try and get help. Of course, Shane's all for going to Fort Benning, 100 miles the other direction.

But that talk was a while ago, before Amy died, err, again.

"Rick, listen to me," I heard my mother say. "Lucy was almost killed. We can't risk the children like this-"

"I'm doing what I can. The CDC will be save. Secure. Isn't that what you want for them?" My father told her.

"Yes but… We're all terrified. Tell me something with certainty."

"I love you. That's all I got."

It's all my father can promise…

XXX

I sat up against a tree by my family's tent, holding a book in my lap, though I wasn't actually reading it. I could tell the sun was setting by the sudden chill in the air. Or maybe it was just my nerves. I tried to make myself warmer by pulling the blanket I brought with tighter around me. I let my hair loose so it could help to warm my ears, along with a knit hat my grandmother made for me.

I thought about my gram… She died before my brother was born… car accident. I still remember how hard and long I cried when I heard the devastating news, being to mere age of four. Only a week prior, my family celebrated my birthday. I still remember the vibrant colors of the flower cake she and my mother made… I remember when my mother knocked over her cup of water with her swollen tummy.

What I don't remember, however, was the gifts I got. Strange, I know… Well, all but what my grandmother made me. Let's just say… She was such a common, classic woman. She loved to knit and cook. Everything she made for me… It was like a diamond… Priceless, unique. I missed her like crazy when she died.

"You shouldn't be out 'ere this late." Daryl said from behind, startling me.

"Neither should you." I told him. "Besides, I'm close enough."

"Don't mean a Walker can't still get you."

"Wouldn't that just be terrible…"

I felt the ground beside me shift as the much older man sat down beside me. I slid over to my left so he had more room. "So… How're you holdin' up since-"

"What Guillermo did to me?" I interrupted, snapping with anger. "You don't even know what he did to me."

Daryl went silent. Figures. "Your dad know?"

"No. And if I tell him… He probably A, won't believe me, or B, he'll march back down to Atlanta and get himself killed. Either way, it's a lose-lose situation."

"You wanna tell me what happened?" Daryl asked me. I sighed, weighing my options. I could tell him, but I didn't really know him that well. Or, I could keep the pain inside me, just to explode on an unwilling, harmless person.

"An eye for an eye." I told him. "You tell me something about you, I tell you what happened."

Daryl fell silent again. I thought he was out. Fine by me. He didn't have to- "I was abused by both my parent- dad mostly. Both were alcoholics. But my mom… She was a chain-smoker…" Daryl went on, telling me about the tragic story of how his mother died.

When he finished, I felt a wave of sympathetic guilt rushing through me. It made me regret treating my mom so badly… She tried to make things right, but I just shoved her away. "I'm… Sorry, Daryl. That's… That's just terrible…"

"Don't be sorry… I felt pretty bad back then, but…" Daryl sniffed, as if he were actually crying… "I'm over it."

I gave Daryl a few minutes to fix himself, before he asked about my issue with the Vatos. So… I told him. I felt…Nice, but strange to tell him. I even told him about how I came to be blind. I had a hard time believing that he really wanted to know all this.

I mean… This is Daryl Dixon. Keyword: Dixon. I was there when we found Merle's hand. I knew what to expect of them. But… When Merle was still here, when he'd… Um…you know… Daryl wouldn't join in. He'd just stand there. Or maybe he wasn't even nearby.

"That makes two of us…Y'know… Mom issues." I said to Daryl.

XXX

The next morning was full of packing and tearing down camp. We were ready within the next two hours. Shane was giving off instructions of staying in line with the others while driving. Morales announced that his family would be going to Birmingham, and I could only imagine the sad expression on my brother's face, now that he was loosing two friends.

Damnit…

I couldn't really be there for him, and I really thought Louis and Eliza would, especially for Sophia. Well, at least her terrible father's dead.

I sat in the back of Carol's 1979 Jeep Cherokee with the remaining Pelletier's, and my baby brother while my parents sat in the front. I felt… Crowded, though I was happy to be on the outside. Carol and I exchanged some small talk about our lives before the outbreak while the kids played with some of Carl's toys. Carol slowly began to grow on me, and before I knew it, we were gossiping just like bubbly blonde teenage girls, unlike the actually smart personality of the two of us.

But, the trip had some malfunctions. The RV radiator hose burst, and Dale was complaining about it, over and over. Shane and T-Dog went on an adventure to find a new hose, while Jim… He just got worse.

He was in so much pain. Poor guy. He was a good person, and didn't deserve this. Once Shane and T-Dog returned, it was final.

Jim wanted to be left behind.

XXX

"If you don't let us in, you're killing us!" My father screamed.

"Dad, please! We have to go, _now!"_ I shouted, along with everyone else.

"You're killing us!"

"_Dad!_"

"_You're killing us!"_

I heard the booming sounds of the CDC'S front doors being opened, and I swore I could actually see light.


	9. Chapter 9

_ReadWriteLove715- You have no idea how excited I was when I read your review! I'm glad to hear that you like my story, all of you guys. Lucy and Lori will slowly build back their friendship, due to what Daryl told Lucy about his mother dying, she realized to make things right and open her heart back to her mother._

_Of course, like many stories… There's gonna be a fight between them later on, causing some more conflict. (But don't worry, that won't be until Season 3)_

**AN: I want you guys to know that I started a poll for this story. It's about Lucy romancing someone from the group (as brought up by Rose). I personally don't care myself, and I'd love to hear from you. **

_**Chapter 9**_

"Are any of you infected?" A male voice boomed as we pulled ourselves inside of the CDC. I inhaled the change of smell from the outside, feeling safer at the familiar, yet distant scent of the hospital. Baby powder, soap, and something else…

"One of our group was…" My father piped "But… He didn't make it."

The room went silent, save the scuffle of my shoe as I tapped it on the tiled floor, and the soft sound of our breathing. I wondered what everyone was gazing upon. I wondered what that man looked like.

"Why are you here? What…" The man paused. "What do you want?"

"A chance." My father simply relied.

"That's asking an awful lot these says… All right. But- you all must submit to a blood test. That's the price for admission."

"We can do that."

Crap. I hated needles. Well… I guess this is the first step of growing stronger. Of course, I wasn't going to be perfect in the end. I never would be.

XXX

Later that day, after the blood tests, which I'm very proud to say, I only fainted for a few minutes after, (Not being able to _see_ the needles is what spooks me, but I managed to get over it.) we had a massive feast in the CDC cafeteria. The fridges were well stocked with alcohol… And most of the adults… Well, let's just say they'll have a very unpleasant morning.

I chose to sit away from my family, not wanting them to keep pestering me about eating this, or drinking that. My mother fixed me a plate, poured me some Coke in a glass cup. Taking a slow swallow of the beverage, I almost spit it back into the cup, hating the flatness. Not to mention after going a pretty long time without a soft drink, the taste was… Odd… Foreign.

Sitting at the table, I zoned away from everyone's conversations, minding my own business… Until… My mother started talking about me. I instantly snapped in, acting as if I was oblivious to the conversation. She was talking about the time when I was thirteen, and a rumor was going around that I was pregnant.

My mother was drunk, so I highly doubt she realized what she was saying. Things escalated quickly… Everyone- and I mean _everyone-_ thought it was down right _hilarious._ It was embarrassing, humiliating, and made me want to throw my glass at someone.

And that's exactly what I did…

I heard the glass shatter, and everyone fell silent. I felt the unmistakable fiery inferno of anger creeping across my face, and I bolted.

It didn't take long for me to trip and fall flat on my face, but luckily, I wasn't in the cafeteria. I felt a cold pair of hands gently grasping my shoulder and arm, pulling me up. "Are you ok?"

It was Jenner, the man who took our blood and welcomed us here. I nodded, and he stayed silent. I could tell he was looking at my eyes. "Blind, hmm?" He stated. I nodded again. "I might be able to do something about it- How did this happen?"

He let go of my arm, and I relayed the events of the accident to him. Jenner actually seemed intrigued by my story. Maybe it was because he was such a serious person. After all, he was a doctor, not to mention he worked for the CDC.

"Just wait here, uh- Sorry, I didn't catch your name?" He said.

"Lucile." I answered. "But almost everyone calls me Lucy."

"All right."

I heard his feet as they thumped off the carpeted hallway. I listened until the sounds dispelled, and I waited. I went uncomfortable being alone like this. I was somewhere I've never been, and who knows what could happen?

Maybe a Walker would creep around the corner and kill me?

Maybe one of the drunken adults would set the damn place on fire?

Maybe… Damn, I don't know.

The sounds of jumbled voices alerted me, and I froze, only to realize later that it was my group. Someone… Hugged me, and I recognized it as my mother. "Lucy, me and your father need to talk to you."

"Don't you mean 'Your father and I'?" I cockily remarked.

"Sorry…"

XXX

"All right… Lucy…" My mother said. I sat on the couch of our room, listening to the sounds from outside. "Jenner came to us… About… Well, your eyes."

"He says he was working on an experimental eye surgery. He said that… He said he could attempt an eye replacement-" My father started, but I cut him off.

"'Attempt'?"

"That's the thing; Jenner's only done it on dead humans." My mother said.

"I… I don't know. I mean…" I paused, thinking of what to say. "I'd love to see again but… What if it doesn't work?"

"Honey, he's highly skilled at his work."

"I… I… I need to think about it. Just… Thirty minutes, tops." I said.

"All right."

XXX

"Eye replacement, aye?" Daryl said as I stretched across the cot in his storage room he took up. I heard the clink of glass, and I sat up.

"That's what my parents said. For being drunk… They certainly knew what they were saying…" I told him.

"So why ain't you gonna do it?" Daryl asked.

"I never said I wasn't. I just… didn't know."

"Would you rather be blind or-"

"Look like an idiot if this screws up?" I snapped.

"You gotta take risks sometimes."

He was right. And risks would make you stronger. Learn from the mistakes or…

I felt a glass goblet being pushed into my hands, and I knew what it was. Alcohol. I was tempted, but my conscience screamed at me that this is what changed me… I took a slow sip, and cringed as – what I though was Whisky – burned down my throat.

"I'm… Gonna go get a shower. I said, standing up. Daryl took the glass from me, and I heard it clanking to the coffee table. I found my way across the room to the bathroom, and pushed the door open.

Before I could close it, Daryl wedged himself in, and I heard the showerhead turn on, listening to it as it rained off the shower floor. "Just turnin' it on for you."

I heard him leave, and he pulled the door shut with him. I slowly undressed, and slipped inside. It felt good to be in warm water again. However, I didn't want to waste time. I scrubbed myself clean as best I could, and slipped back out, shutting off the water.

I fumbled through the room for a towel, and I wrapped myself around it. After drying off, I heard a knock at the door. I opened the door, and felt something being thrust into my hands. Clothing. The door shut again, and I awkwardly dressed in a pair of flannel shorts, a camisole, and a long-sleeved Hensley after I worked my undergarments onto my body.

Finding a brush, I ran it through my hair, grunting as it got caught in a knot. I struggled to get it out, so I gave up, knowing I couldn't comb my hair. I found my way out of the bathroom, clutching my hairbrush.

"Daryl?" I asked. I heard someone walking across the floor. "Could… Could you help me? I know this sounds really girly, but I _really_ need help"

"What with?" I relaxed knowing he was there and I wasn't alone.

"My… Hair." I whispered, feeling embarrassed."

"What?"

"My hair." I said again after clearing my throat, this time louder. "I can't comb it. I was wondering if- Forget it."

I heard him coming towards me, and he took the brush from my hands. "'Mere." He said. We walked over to the cot, and sat down, me in the front. Daryl ran the brush through my hair, and I winced as he worked through the knots. "Should probably cut your hair. It's gettin' too long."

"All right…"

He got up, and then returned shortly after with a pair of scissors. He finished brushing out my hair, and then began to snip my locks. When he finished, I brushed off my shoulders, and swept my hair into my hands. I found a waste bin – at least I thought it was a waste bin- and tossed my hair in. I ran my fingers through my newly cut hair, seeing that it was now about three inches past my shoulders.

Daryl Dixon: Redneck, hair styler, and friend.

If only Merle could see him now, the elder brother would most likely have a cow.

And so, I returned to Daryl, and we drowned ourselves in his Whiskey. It slowly began to grown on me, and soon, we were off our rockers. I was giggling at the simplest, stupid things. I was having fun. I didn't care what my parents thought.

I felt Daryl lifting me from my spot on the floor. I was confused about what he was doing. Maybe I collapsed and he was helping me up? I was about to demand he put me down, when the unbelievable happened…

He kissed me. I mean _kissed_ me. Well, maybe a little more intense than that. I cupped his face in my hands, tasting the alcohol in his breath. _What the hell are you doing! Stop it! Now!_

My conscience could go to hell…

**AN: I know what you're thinking, but don't worry. All will be ok, and this won't be an awkward story. I promise. **


	10. Chapter 10

_**Chapter 10**_

It felt like I was alive. Like, _really_, alive, as in windblown. But… I didn't understand why this was happening. Simple explanation, I soon realized.

He was drunk. And so was I.

Daryl was what, thirty-two? I was fifteen. No, this was wrong. I pulled away from his mouth, and used my hands as they still clasped his face to prevent him from kissing me again.

He seemed to have put two and two together, for he let me go, and I backed away from him. Fumbling against the wall, I found my way to the door. "Daryl… I'm sorry…" I stepped out into the hallway, and after not hearing him approaching, I ran.

"Lucile?" I heard Dale ask, causing me to stop. I rubbed my face, waiting for him to continue. "Where you going?"

"No where…" I paused. "Actually; have you seen my parents?"

"I just stumbled into your father- poor guy's drunker than… I think your mother's in the rec room."

"Thank you." I started to leave, pushing up against the wall so I could read the brail on the walls- well actually; I used the raised letters- as I pushed my hands against the plastered walls. I came across many rooms, such as a storage room here and a bathroom there. Once I came to the recreation room, I strained my ears to listen to someone crying.

My mother.

"Mom?" I asked, knocking on the door. She stopped crying, and opened the door. She wrapped her arms around me, and pulled me into the room. She sat on the floor, and I went down with her as she continued to sob.

I didn't know what to do. I never really saw my mother cry before, other than at funerals. Something obviously happened. I began to awkwardly pat her back, hoping to sooth her.

"Shane." She muttered. "Don't go near him. I'm begging you. Please."

"Why?" I knew better than to question my parents, but I still wanted answers from them. And Shane.

"Just… Please, trust my word."

I nodded against my mother's shoulder, though I wasn't sure I could trust her. She kept her secret of her affair with Shane away from my brother and me. That's right, a little bird told me. I little bird named Dale Horvath.

"Why didn't you tell Dad?"

Crap. Crap. Crap. _Crap!_ I did _not_ mean to say that, but it just slipped from my mind. My mother was going to kill me.

"I've been asking myself the same thing…. I just… I need to find the right moment." She answered, surprisingly calm.

"And Carl?"

"He'll probably pick up on it eventually."

At that moment, my mother stood up with me, and she guided me out of the recreation room, walking down the many tunnels of hallways. "Where're we going?" I asked.

"To find Dr. Jenner." She answered. "Have you made up your mind yet?"

No. I didn't even think about it. "Uh…"

"I know you didn't." She laughed. "I can tell you've been drinking."

"I'm sorry-"

"No, it's fine. But it's the last time, do you hear me?"

"Yes..."

"Good." My mother patted me on the back.

XXX

The rest of the night was a blur. The surgery was… Strange. I wasn't conscious, but I swore I could still feel Dr. Jenner poking around in my eye sockets. I can only imagine from countless horror movies what my face looked like, all eyeless and bloody.

I thought of my eyes before… They were flawless. Dr. Jenner said they'd still be the same shape around my face, just with little, tiny scares lining my sockets. So now… I had to wait a day until I could take the gauze bandages around my eyes off.

Jenner said if I were to take the bandages off now, the lighting in the building would effect the eye's trying to – as he said- 'sync' to my head. I'm not even sure that's a proper medical term. Oh well…

So… Yeah. The surgery went pretty well.

I would be able to see the world as it really was now. Dead and over. If we were staying at the CDC forever, I'd never come in contact with a Walker again.

As the days passed since we encountered the Vatos, I began to rebuild myself. I thought back to my gunshot, knowing that it saved my life from dying. Once, maybe twice.

It was time to put that all behind me. I was one step closer to becoming a stronger person who was ready for this world.

XXX

"Morning."

I turned up from my plate off powdered eggs, smiling as I heard my father talking. "Morning." I said back to him, along with everyone else.

I heard more talking, but the room went silent as – which I was only assuming – Shane stormed in.

"How're you feeling?" My father asked with a hint of worry to his voice. If only he knew… "As bad as I do?"

"Worse." Shane grumbled back.

"What's wrong with your neck?" T-Dog asked. Well, let's see. Shane tried to get in my mother's pants, so she defended herself. I was really proud of her.

"Dunno… Must've done it in my sleep."

"You lying piece of sack crap." I mumbled.

"Never seen you do that before." My father said, catching onto what I had said.

"You're right man. Not like me at all."

XXX

"Vi. Display brain scans from Test Subject 19." Jenner ordered. "This ultra secret- though worthless- video shows someone who was infected and allowed us to record the events."

I could make out the tiniest sliver of light from the video through my bandages, though I engrossed myself as I sat on the ground with my brother. "Experiences," Jenner continued. "Memories. Somewhere in all that organic wiring is you. The thing that makes you unique and human." He paused. "Scan to the first event."

"_Scanning to first event_."

"Everything you ever were or ever will be- gone."

I could only imagine what it must be like. I was so close to dying the other night, several times. I thought of Jim. He was bit… And now, he was either a Walker stumbling around or facedown on the pavement with his brains blown out of his head.

When Shane lied to us about my father dying, I didn't know what to think. Disbelief was one. The pain of heartbreak was another. It seemed to me that God was aiming against our family.

Well, we weren't exactly the innocent, perfect preachy family who tried to give people "Guidance". People had their own problems, and we had ours. So what?

"C'mon Lucy." Carl said, standing up and away from my lap. He pulled me up – I was practically a twig, hardly a challenge for a twelve-year-old boy to lift- and we walked with our mother as some of the men went off to do… I don't know. Stuff.

"Lucy?" I heard Daryl say. I stopped dead in my tracks as my family pressed onwards. "Can I talk to you?"

"I don't know…" I said, crossing my arms over my chest.

I felt his hand clasping around my shoulder, and he pulled me into his room, closing the door behind him. "I just-"

"You want to apologize." I interrupted. "I get it. We were both drunk, and-"

"No. Well…" He paused, and I heard him take a deep breath. "Shit. I don't know. I-"

Suddenly, the air conditioners in the room shut off with a faint boom. The two of us slipped into the hallway, and Daryl began to yell. At Jenner.

Daryl pushed me forward was we followed Jenner down a winding space of hallways along with everyone else.

"…The building will decontaminate in less than thirty minutes."

Shit. Well, it was nice knowing everyone. Nice knowing that I'd die a virgin, which I was very much proud of.

Let's just say all hell broke loose. My father tried to get us out, but Jenner locked us in. I slammed my hands to my ears as a deafening alarm went off.

But before I was to die, I wanted to know what Daryl Dixon was going to say to me. I removed my hands from my ears, and found my way to the ax-wielding Redneck. "Daryl?"

"What?" He grunted as he swung. I winced at every single collision he made with the weapon to the glass.

"What were you gonna say before-"

"Ain't gonna matter now!" He interrupted. I felt him thrusting a knife into my hands, and he told me to hit the glass. As if anything would happen, but I tried.

The two of us swung at the glass in unsynchronized swings. As if it were never there, the glass door opened, and Daryl drug me along through the hallways.

We stopped in the rooms and hastily grabbed our bags, leaving behind anything that was out in the open. I continued to run out with Daryl, stumbling on his heels as he pulled me along.

I thumped into Daryl's back as he came to a sudden stop. I stumbled back, but quickly regained my balance. "What the hell?" Daryl questioned. "You gotta be kiddin' me-"

"Get down, NOW!" My father barked. Daryl pulled me down to the ground, and we tried to cover each other the best we could from a corner in the space around us. I heard an explosion erupting, and I panicked, assuming it to be the building. I felt air whirl past us as Daryl and I clutched on even tighter, burying our heads.

And then… Nothing.

Daryl helped me up, and we all jumped out of the whole in the wall, sprinting in giant strides across the courtyard.

Just in time, Daryl and I managed to get down in front of his truck before the CDC erupted in golfing flames. Shaken, I stood up, and I nervously climbed into Daryl's truck with him, clouding my mind in disbelief as we drove away from the black smoke floating above the CDC.

**AN: This will NOT become a Daryl+OC story, unless like, all of you want it. Some of you guys voted on the poll, but you never messaged me about who you wanted. I need you guys to tell me and decide over this short break. **_**Polls will be closed on March 20**__**th**__** at 6:00 PM.**___


	11. Chapter 11

**AN: ****Ember**** was updated, guys. Season three has started and I'm on a roll. And I have a confession to make. I never thought this story would really take off. I got the idea one night while I was reading other fan fictions (For Skyrim actually). I was listening to the song, and I first intended to make a Skyrim story about a blind beggar, but I decided to make it a Walking Dead story. **

**And if Robert Kirkman came up to me right now and asked if I wanted to change The Walking Dead just to add one of my OCs, I'd probably pick…. Allison, actually. **

**Just kidding. I'd pick Lucy.**

**I started a Forum for ****Hello****. A better description can be given on the direct page. The link you can find on my profile, but (sorry) it isn't a hyperlink. **

**The polls look good. I've gotten a lot for Daryl, and one for Randall. **

**So far (Currently as of March 2****nd**** 2013, 9:22 PM,) I have 7 for Yes at 63% and 4 for No at 36%. Not sure how that works because that adds up to 99%, not 100%. Hmm…**

**Well, I'll shut up and you guys enjoy ^^**

_**Chapter 11**_

_"My baby!" Carol screamed. "Two Walkers are after my baby!"_

Where were we supposed to go now? The CDC's gone, the Vatos are all dead, Atlanta is still a shit hole, and… Well, you get it.

After we left the CDC, we decided to go camp with the Vatos. Yeah, the assholes that kidnapped Glenn and I, yet turned out to not be assholes.

When we arrived at their hideout and entered the outpost, Walkers were everywhere, devouring our allies. We explored, only to find that the people had been murdered. We spent the night, terrified that a straggling Walker would find us.

And in the morning, we piled back into the cars, and since about a day and a half passed, I took off my bandages.

Seeing dead people everywhere wasn't exactly what I wanted to see. Still, I was ecstatic. I could see again. I was able to look in a mirror and say, "I'm proud of how I look". I had forgotten what I looked like. My family was just as happy…

As we were leaving, my family and I embraced each other, but something caught my eye. Shane. He was staring longingly at us. After all he's done so far, he doesn't deserve my father, my mother, Carl, or me.

I sat in the back of Carol's Cherokee in the same way we were on the way to the CDC. I couldn't stop staring at everything we passed. And I'd only been blind for a year, but it was traumatic.

I hope Fort Benning is safe. Oh yeah… I didn't mention that.

"I just thought," My father said. "About our trip to the Grand Canyon."

"I remember that." I said.

"Me too!" My brother piped in.

"No Carl, you were just a baby. Lucy however…" My mother laughed. "We never made it. Carl. He got so sick; we had to see a doctor. It was a wonder he said you'd live. So we drove home and…"

"That sucks." My brother said.

"No. It was a good trip."

"The best. I never knew a baby could throw up so much." My father laughed.

"As for Lucy. She sat in the back seat, kicking and screaming, shouting 'I hate Carl!' over and over." My mother said. I smiled, nodding my head.

"And then, as if Carl could actually understand you…"

"Don't say it!" I warned sarcastically.

"He puked on you. And believe me, were you sick."

"Can we go?" Sophia asked. "To the Grand Canyon?"

"See, that's the problem. We-" My father started, but cut himself off as he slammed on the brakes, lurching us forward in our seats.

I heard my father muttering under his breath, and he got out of the car. The minute I looked out the window, the sight was shocking. Dead bodies. Everywhere. On the road, in cars, even some under the abandoned vehicles.

I remember being here with my mother, Carl, Shane, and the Peletiers. We were driven out of the highway after fights broke out and the Walkers attacked. Shane saved our lives on many occasions. Still, it didn't make up for what he did to my mother.

My mother. I felt like such a jackass. I had treated her so poorly, and all she tried to do was make things right.

I watched, curiously as she stepped out of the car. I followed, and so did my brother. Carol and Sophia were hesitant, but they followed. I felt someone clutch onto my back, causing me to stumble forward.

"Lucy?" Carl asked, showing the fear in his voice.

"What?" I asked him as he clung to me.

"Are they? Dead?"

"Yes…"

We nervously crawled through the wreckage, meeting up with our parents and the rest of the group. I felt as if I were being watching. Who knew what was in here? Maybe the dead people weren't actually dead.

I looked at the RV, feeling the empty pit in my stomach grow as I saw smoke rising from the hood of the vehicle. "Radiator hose." Shane said from behind me.

"It always is." I mused.

I realized that my parents were back in the Cherokee. Carl dug his fingernails into me once he realized it for himself. I tried to walk forward, but I was anchored by my brother's dead weight. "C'mon." I said to him to get him to move.

The cars began to move, save the RV. The vehicles only made it about a few feet before giving up. Now, everyone was with us.

"If you can't find a radiator hose here." I heard Shane point out.

"Whole lotta other stuff we can find." Daryl offered, already going through a car.

"We could siphon more fuel from these cars, for a start." T-Dog said.

"Maybe some water?" Carol added.

"This place is a graveyard." My mother blandly said. "I don't know how I feel about this."

We all looked at each other, hoping for a sign. Eventually, we decided that supplies came first over feelings. "Gather what you can, y'all." Shane ordered.

So, we split up. I saw Daryl walking further along the highway, and I decided to catch up with him. I needed answers. Now. I watched him stop by a car, pulling the contents out of the trunk. I jogged up to him, leaning against the car's side as I waited for him to finish.

"What to you want?" He asked me.

"Answers." I simply told him.

"'Bout what?" He said as he pulled away from the car.

"I think you and I both know." I replied.

Daryl scowled at me, and took a step closer. I stepped back, crossing my arms. He didn't say anything. I shook my head in annoyance, and turned my back to him, walking off into the distance.

He didn't follow me, which I was thankful for. I stopped at an old Buick, carefully moving my arm around the shards of metal from the dented and destroyed vehicle. A single bag lay inside, wedged in between two sleeping bags.

I reached for the bag, having to climb in to grasp it. Once I had a good grip on the strap, I removed the bag from its place, setting it beside me on the ground.

I started to go back in for the sleeping bags, but I was stopped as a pair of arms draped across my chest. I tried to shove myself out of the arms, and I was about to scream until someone barked at me in my ear.

"Stop it." I heard Daryl harshly whisper in my ear. "Get under this car. Don't come out 'til I come back for you."

"Why?" I whispered back.

"Just do it."

He released me, and I scurried under the Buick. The destroyed car camouflaged me, and I bumped into something… Wet, gushy, and… Dead.

I turned my head to the side, catching my breath in my throat as I came face-to-face with a dead human. I wanted to scream and leave, but I remembered what Daryl told me.

What the hell was going on?

I was about to call out for Daryl, but I shut my mouth as they came.

The unmistakable scuffle of feet.

The unmistakable groaning.

The unmistakable aspects of the Walkers.

Now I really wanted to scream. I was alone, and hundreds of Walkers were parading past me. I scurried closer to the dead body, hoping that none of my limbs were sticking out.

I shut my eyes and pushed the palms of my hands into my ears. I began to count to one hundred in my head. As the sounds of feet still filled into my ears, grabbing at the drums, I shoved my palms even harder, yanking my hair down with them.

I feared a lot during those long minutes. I feared that the dead body I was with would actually turn out to be a Walker and kill me. I feared that a Walker would trip and get me. I feared that my family was dead.

I heard a Walker giving an almost warlike cry. My eyes sprung open, wet with tears in which had begun to well up. I thought I was dead, until I watched it go down. With Daryl. He pulled a knife out of his head, and I saw him covering T-Dog with it. Then one for himself as the herd came towards them.

It seemed as if hours had passed until the last of the Walkers passed. I watched Daryl as he pushed the dead body off of him, and then T-Dog, who looked like he was ready to kill over.

I watched Daryl's boots head towards me, as he grew closer to the car. He crouched down, and we locked eye contact.

Those blue eyes.

It was the first time I ever saw them.

"You ok?" He asked me.

I solemnly nodded, and he wrapped his hands around my biceps and triceps. He began to pull me out from under the car, and then it happened.

Someone screamed. A little girl. We only had one girl left now. Sophia.

Daryl and I took off in a sprint as T-Dog staggered behind. We slid around the cars and dead bodies just to reach the others. By the time we arrived, I saw my mother holding a weeping Carol back from the side of the road.


	12. Chapter 12

**AN: A huge shout out to everyone who voted. Thank you!**

**Lucy will fall in love, and based on whom you all said, I have my plans. I told one of you what would happen, but he or she is forbidden to say anything. **

**Do not loose hope on what goes one. Some of you won't like the idea, but it won't be that big of a burden. **

**ALSO! The romance will NOT have sex. Lucy is only 15! Yes, as the seasons pass, she will get older, but still. This will be very mild. **

**Sorry for not updating sooner. Homework has been taking up so much of my life. **

**Fun fact! Coincidently, my grandparent's names are Judy and Carl! Y'know! Like Judith and Carl from Walking Dead! And… Commander Shepard from Mass Effect was born on my birthday, but I already said that before on **_**Tourniquet (Ember)**_

_**Chapter 12**_

My heart went out to Carol. She collapsed in my mother's arms, crying a river. I wished my father would return soon with Sophia.

Carl clung to my waist, burying his face in my torso, sobbing like a mangled dog. I began to stroke his hair, attempting to sooth him. I stared out into the woods in shock meanwhile, mouth agape, waiting for my father to return. Every time a bush rustled, or a tree swayed; leaves crunching or twigs snapping, I expected them to emerge.

As each agonizing seconds passed I began to lose hope. I averted my attention back to my weeping brother. I knew Carol needed more love than him right now, but he was my brother. His tears had begun to seep through my shirt, becoming trapped under the material as the separating orbs absorbed unto the yellow and white fibers.

I couldn't have cared less about the wet stain from his tears. I wasn't the typical preppy high school bitch who had to change their shirts after spilling a little drop of water on their shirt. It would dry. Even if it were blood, I still wouldn't have cared.

"WHERE IS SHE!?"

My eyes snapped to Carol, who was cursing at someone. My father.

Oh God. No. Where was Sophia?

XXX

As my father, Daryl, Glenn, and Shane the pain went off to look for the little girl, the rest of us stayed behind. I sat in the RV, paging through _The Mist._ I loved Stephen King books, frequently staying up for hours reading when I should've been sleeping, and then having wild, scary ass dreams. (All before I was blind.)

So back to Stephen King: I was delighted to see that Dale had quite the collection of his works: _Bag of Bones, Under the Dome, The Stand, The Shining, Carrie, Dolores Claiborne, _and _Lisey's Story_. I took them all after Dale told me I could, as he didn't need that fear anymore now that he was living one.

If the outbreak were to just magically clear up one day, I think I would write a memoir about it, like Stephen King wrote about that one book with being so shocking by watching his friend getting hit by a train.

This, as you are reading, is more or less, a diary, only without dates and Tee-hee secrets. I was never really into that stuff.

I was the weird kid who was into horror and science and took pleasure in the suffering of others. Well, not everyone, just the people I despised.

People like Shane.

XXX

Shane and Glenn returned, without my dad, Daryl, or better yet, Sophia. They came back to keep peace with us. We all got set to work, getting back to the cars. Well, not before we had a group chat.

"Sooner we get the cars moved, the sooner we can turn the RV around after it's been repaired, doubling back to the bypass I flagged." Glenn explained.

"We have more fuel." I said. "It shouldn't be a problem, right? What if we get caught?"

"We need to leave first." Shane said.

"Can't be soon enough for me." Andrea chimed in. "I'm still freaked about that herd that passed us by – or whatever you'd call it."

I nodded with the woman. "Isn't it weird? I huge crowd like that?" Glenn asked.

"Herd… that sounds about right." Shane agreed. "Like the night camp got attacked. Just a wandering pact."

"Only fewer." I added. "Where are they coming from?"

Carol walked up to us, interrupting our calm discussion. She pouted on about how we should all be looking for Sophia. _Yeah? I don't see you out there with my dad._ My mother assured Carol that we wouldn't leave her daughter behind.

My eyes landed on Carl, after hearing a box topple out from a car. He struggled to put the box in, so I jogged over, laying it back into the smashed vehicle.

"Whatcha doing?" I asked him. He shrugged. "Carl." I warned, giving him the "look". "Tell me."

"Just exploring." He said. Lie.

"Every explorer needs a partner. C'mon, I'll go with you."

The two of us continued down the highway, going through bags as we went along. We separated, and stumbled upon a locked box.

I took out a bobby pin I had in my frizzy hair, and stuck it in the lock. One edge served as the shiv, and the other as the lock pick.

After a few tries, full of cursing and yelling and kicking, the chest unlocked. I pried the top open, gazing at what appeared to be pictures of a family and a small box. I pulled out the pictures, feeling tears come to my eyes as I looked through them.

The first one was a wedding picture. The bride had curly black hair and piercing green eyes. Her tan skin complemented her strapless dress perfectly. The groom had cropped brown hair, grey eyes, and pale skin. Then a house with the same couple standing in front of it. Then a small album where the wife took pictures of her stomach from the side, showing a baby bump and how it was progressing.

Then, a hospital picture. Then, a birthday picture. Then, a fall pho- I stopped myself, shoving the photos into my pocket.

I opened the small box from inside, which appeared to be a jewelry box. However, the red velvet interior housed only air. Inside of the car, I saw the married couple holding hands, both dead and partially eaten, along with a bloody booster seat in the back.

I brought my hands to my eyes, shaking my head in disbelief. I heard a scream from my brother, and I ran to him. "Carl! Carl!"

I saw him on the ground, and a Walker looming over him. Carl just stared at it, and the Walker did nothing. I quickly realized that it was dead.

I helped my brother up off the ground, seeing that he had something clutched in his hands. He rolled the bundle out across the ground, revealing an assortment of blades.

"Good job, buddy." I said, clasping his back. Carl rolled the bundle back up, and the two of us ran back to the group.

"Shane!" He called. "Shane!"

"Carl?" My mother asked. "What's wrong?"

"Mom, check it out!" Carl said, showing off the blades. "It's an arsenal!"

"Put them away."

"Woah!" Ignoring our mother, Carl pulled out a hatchet, and began swinging it around. "It's a hatchet!"

"What did I just say?" My mother took the blade from Carl, and he began to plead for it back. Shane ordered him to take the blades to Dale.

Carl was shut down.

I went after him, but my mother grabbed me by the shoulder, thrusting the hatchet into my hand. "Keep this. Don't let Carl see." She gave me a warning look before squeezing my other hand. "Keep yourselves safe."

"I will." I promised.

Tracking away to find Carl again, I stopped as I listened to my mother yelling at Shane. Hiding behind a vehicle, I perked my ears, eavesdropping.

"Leaving?" I heard my mother say.

"Yep." Shane slapped the hood of a green Hyundai. "Preppin' my new ride."

"Is this about the CDC when you tried to-"

"Tried to what? What do you think that was?"

I scowled, bunching my eyebrows as they continued. Shane claimed that he was guilty for attacking my mom, and all this other shit. I was tempted to pull out that hatchet and slam it through his damn face.

Suddenly, a radio from the vehicle turned around, and I watch everyone approach. I emerged from my hiding place, joining them, only to find out that the just like the one that used to air outside of Atlanta, just stuck in a loop.

XXX

My father and Daryl returned at sunset, only to return empty handed by the grief stricken mother, greeting them with a pattern of moody curses.

"You didn't find anything?" She cried.

"Trail went cold." My father told her. "Best wait 'til morning."

"But she's only twelve!" Carol argued. "She can't spend the night on her own!"

"Carol, we're doing everything we can." I told her, defending the men.

"Besides, huntin' in the dark's no good." Daryl said.

"We'll pick up the search and make an organized effort in the mornin'." My dad said.

Carol hung her head, only to freeze her head and start to hyperventilate. I took note that she was upset about large splotches of blood on Daryl's pants. Jeez, it looked like he was on his period.

"Not mine. We gutted a Walker. Made sure it wasn't near your little girl." He said.

Carol continued to accuse my father on being a bad person, for leaving Sophia in the woods. Shane and I stepped forward, though I didn't bother with him.

"Carol, knock it off." I spat. "My dad is doing everything he can. At least he isn't just gonna leave her for dead. He's trying. Something you're_ not_ doing. Suppose we all go out in the dark. We hear something. We shoot, thinking it's a Walker, and it turned out to just be Sophia. **Bam**. We just murdered a little girl. Or maybe we get caught off guard and it's the other way around. **Bam.** One of us just died looking for a little girl who just had to run off, instead of waiting for someone to say it was clear." I continued.

"Your daughter needs to grow up. It's the only way she's gonna survive. She needs to suck it up, pull through, and maybe… Maybe we'll find her soon, and she can teach _you_ a thing or two about surviving."

"Don't you _dare_ say that about my daughter." Carol gasped.

"Well, I just did. She almost got us killed at the nursing home by crying because a Walker stumbled by!"

"She's only twelve!"

"**SO IS MY BROTHER!**" I screamed. "Sophia isn't the only one! My brother was fine, so I'm sure your daughter should've been." I calmed down, shaking my head. "Y'know, Carol, I'm sorry. I'm sorry Sophia ran off."

XXX

In the morning, we continued the search, just as we promised we would. T-Dog and Dale stayed behind while the rest of us went to look for Sophia. Even Carl got to come along.

We searched for hours, the day wearing on. We were all tired from the fruitless search. I often wondered if Sophia was even alive. We came to a small campsite with a single figure sitting inside of a lone tent.

We froze as my father, Shane, and Daryl stepped towards the tent. As they opened the tent, they began to gag at the smell of decay, which soon reached all of our noses. Daryl disappeared inside, and then popped out after Carol began to call for Sophia.

"Ain't her." Daryl sighed. "Some guy. Did what Jenner said. 'Opted it out' ain't that what he called it?"

As we continued, I kept an eagle eye on Shane as he rebuked my brother when he tried to talk to him. My mother pulled Carl forward, both of us now glaring at Shane.

"Mom? I think Shane's mad at me." He whined.

"No honey, I promise you." She told him, deflecting the rest. "He's just worried about Sophia, that's all."

And then, we heard it. In the distance. The ringing. The continuous ringing of bells. Church bells.

We all bolted towards the church, assuming Sophia was ringing them, or that someone found her. We ran down a steep hill, and cut through a cemetery. Stopping outside of the small Baptist church, Shane examined the church, shaking his head.

"This can't be it." He observed. "Got no steeple."

But, we headed in anyways. Opening the tall red doors, we froze in horror as three figures arose from the pews. Walkers.

My father, Shane, and Daryl stepped forward, beating the Walkers in their decaying brains until they died. No trace of Sophia here.

"SOPHIA!"

XXX

"Timer." Daryl huffed, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "It's on a timer."

We spent the next few hours at the church, mostly so Carol could spend time with the lord and we could plan. I sat on the back steps of the church, digging up the ground with my hatchet. I watched a shadow moving along the grass, and I looked up as Daryl sat down beside me.

"I want you to have somethin'." He said. He pulled out a small revolver, and handed it to me.

"What about you?" I asked, not excepting the gun, handing it back to him.

"Found it in the tent." He said. I slowly took the gun again, nodding.

"Thanks."

I stood up, and wandered back inside the church, where Carol was praying with my mother. I stood in the back with my father and Carl, hiding the gun. However, my father saw me shoving it into the waistband of my pants, and gave me a questioning look.

"I-I found it on the highway." I stuttered, not wanting him to know that Daryl had given it to me.

"Give it here." He said.

"But I know how to shoot!" I said. "I'm not going to shoot someone!"

"Keep it away unless you need it. And I mean absolutely need it." He warned.

"Yes Dad."

XXX

We split up even more. Daylight was fading, so we made the call to go back. My father and Shane wanted to go on searching while the rest of us were sent back to the highway. Carl- the lucky ducky- got to go with my father.

Tracking back through the woods for what I hoped would be a peaceful walk turned to otherwise. Carol didn't hesitate to express her frustration about how we didn't turn up any new leads on Sophia.

Daryl didn't like that our group was further split up.

Andrea- maybe the only person other than my family and Daryl who I didn't want to kill- attacked my mother about having a gun in which my father provided.

"You want it?" My mother spat. "Here. I'm sick of the looks you're all givin' me."

I watched as my mother handed over her gun. My mother angrily told everyone to stop blaming my father for what happened to Sophia. He ran after her like he did, unlike anyone else. She told them that she was tired of them mistrusting us, as in my family, and that they were all free to leave any time they wanted.

Andrea hung her head, and handed her gun back to my mother. "We should get going."


	13. Chapter 13

_**Chapter 13**_

We continued to trudge on. None of us spoke a word to each other, the only noise being the leaves and twigs breaking below.

I kept my head low. I seemed to have been the one who sorta isolated from the group. I wasn't exactly sure what my mother was ranting on about by when she said that no one trusted our family. Maybe Carol, but I don't know about anyone else.

_**BANG**_

__We all came to a sudden stop, nervously looking around us. That gun shot… Maybe it was my dad, or Shane. My mother and I exchanged worried looks. The group continued to move again, but we strayed behind, constantly searching for the source of the shot.

"Why just _one_ gunshot?" She asked. "Rick and Shane wouldn't waste a bullet to take down a single Walker."

"Yeah. Something isn't right." I said.

"They should've caught up to us by now." Carol added.

Daryl scowled, brandishing his crossbow. "Can't run 'round these woods chasin' echoes."

Andrea and Carol began to talk. I could tell by the look on Andrea's face that Carol said something to strike a spark in Andrea. Her eyes said it. Something about Amy…

"It's a waste of time, all this hopin' and prayin'. We're gonna find that little girl; she's gonna be just fine." Daryl said.

XXX

"How much further?" Andrea asked.

"Not much. Maybe a hundred yards, as the crow flies." Daryl said.

As the crow flies? What the hell is that supposed to mean?

"Too bad we're not crows…" I found myself chuckling at Andrea's comment.

Suddenly, a scream pierced my ears, and I turned around, witnessing a Walker as it prepared to dig its God-awful teeth and claws into her very much living skin.

A horse came out of nowhere, galloping as its rider clutched a baseball bat, and bashed it across the brain. The Walker flipped off Andrea, becoming nothing more than a pile of flesh on the grass.

"Lori?" The rider said, stopping the horse. I got a closer look at the rider, discovering that he or she was a she. She was a beautiful looking brunette with chin length hair and striking, captivating blue eyes. Her skin was tan, and she spoke with a strong southern drawl. "Lori Grimes?"

"T-that's me." My mother said as she stepped forward.

"There's been an accident. Carl's been shot."

"What?" I cried.

My mother climbed on the horse, and Maggie gave us directions to her family.

"You can't just leave with her!" Daryl objected.

"You have a group by the highway, right?"

With that, the woman departed on her horse, kicking the dirt as she galloped off into the woods.

"Mom" I shouted. "Wait!" I started to run up to the horse as it galloped away, but Glenn pulled me back, preventing me from following. "_Mom!_"

XXX

As soon as we returned to the highway, I found my way inside the RV immediately and collapsed on the bed in the back.

I felt hot tears sliding down my face, soaking into the pillow. What if Carl died, and I wasn't there? What if something happened to my parents, and I wasn't there? Then what?

I began to choke on my tears, but I didn't care.

Hyperventilating came next, followed by screaming and vandalizing. I grabbed a glass cut from the end table, and slammed it onto the ground, screaming as the glass shattered on the carpet.

I pulled the blankets off the bed, and tried to rip the cotton fabric. I was overreacting, but I couldn't stop myself.

The seams popped down about three inches before I balled up the blanket and chucked it down the hallway.

Opening the cupboards, I pulled out the nearest book and began yanked page after page out, tossing the parchment everywhere.

On the bed, I hugged my legs as my body shook. It felt like the devil was drumming on my brain as it pounded with anger and grief.

I clenched my eyes shut, threw my head back, and screamed to the top of my lungs, before passing out on the bed…

_I sat in an old apple orchard on the wet grass. The cold nipped at me, and crows pecked at the rotten fruit on the ground. _

_ The sky was grey, and the trees were black. Everything seemed to be dark eerie colors. I heard laughter. A child's laughter. Carl's laughter._

_ Standing up, my legs felt like noodles. As I moved, the only sound was the crows calling to each other. I saw a bright light just across the row of trees, waving at me, before turning around and running off, leaving nothing but darkness behind._

_ Carl._

_ I called for him, but the crows only answered me as they continued to feast. I forced my legs to move, carrying myself off to the light. _

_ My brother sat against a tree, playing with a rock. Once I reached him, he disappeared. _

_ I looked around me, spotting the light twenty yards away. It kept moving…_

_ Carl._

_ The closer I got to the light, the slower everything got. Everything was in slow motion. I felt like I was being sucked down a tunnel. _

_ I reached my brother, reaching out to hug him. As I embraced him, I felt my skin growing hot._

_ I yanked away from my brother, screaming in shock as he engulfed himself in flames. I felt myself being torn away from him._

_ Carl._

_ Someone wrapped his or her arms around me, the time growing even slower. I struggled to get away, screaming at the person. However, my vocal cords failed to vibrate, allowing only air to escape my mouth._

_ Carl._

_ I watched in horror as the fire disappeared, leaving only ashes, which were carried away by the wind. As the wind howled, a woman sobbed, though I didn't recognize it as my mother…_

_ I wanted to die._


	14. Chapter 14

_**Chapter 14**_

_"Wake up."_

My eyes fluttered open at the continuous sobbing. I clung to the mattress in terror. Where's the orchard? Where's Carl? Why am I not dead?

I quickly realized what really went on. Staring up at the ceiling, I inhaled the distance scent of pine from the air. I shifted in the bed, facing the crying victim, glaring. Carol.

For a moment, I want to scream at her for acting this way. Sophia was going to be fine. That wasn't my problem with Carol. No, my problem was her not giving any hope for my brother.

I climbed off the mattress, standing in the dark. I continued to glare at Carol before I departed from the room.

Without warning, a hand latched onto my ankle, and I yelped as I was pulled down to the ground.

"Really, Daryl?" I heard Andrea say.

I sat up, inching away from Daryl. Andrea shook her head as she got back to putting a gun together. Daryl grunted before sitting up as well.

"How're you holding up?" Andrea asked me. She was referring to Carl.

"Better than earlier." I replied.

"We cleaned up your mess."

"'Bout that…"

Andrea smiled, and rolled her shoulders. I stood up, sitting across from her as she worked on her gun. Daryl was up on his feet, too. He slid over to the table, reached across from me, and grabbed his crossbow, which I didn't even realize I was sitting by.

"I need my clip now." He said to Andrea. She took a deep breath, and handed over the ammo. Daryl pushed it into his gun. "I'm gonna walk up the road. Look for the girl."

The three of us looked back at Carol, who was rubbing her thumb under her eyes. Daryl nodded once, before withdrawing from the RV.

Andrea looked at me, like she was up to something. She motioned for me to get out from the table, and the two of us left the RV, flashlights in hands along with our knives and my gun.

"We're coming, too." Andrea said as she closed the door.

"Gonna go for a walk. Shine some light in the forest. If she's out there, give her somethin' to look-"

"You think that's a good idea right now?" Dale interrupted from the roof of the RV.

"Dale." Andrea said, shaking her head. The two of us began our walk, slipping past Daryl. Daryl turned to us, following behind.

XXX

"You really think we're going to find Sophia?" Andrea questioned.

Daryl shined his flashlight in her face, but she hardly acknowledged it. "You got that look on your face. Same as everybody else. Hell's wrong with you people? Just started lookin'."

"Do you?"

"I don't." I muttered. The two of them stopped, and Daryl scowled at me. Before he could blow up on me, I supported my reason. "What are the odds that she isn't dead? Weaponless, tired, and scarred, who knows?" They turned away from me, and we started back up.

"Ain't the mountains. It's Georgia. Probably in some farmhouse… People get lost; they survive. Happens all the time." Daryl said.

"She's only twelve." Andrea shot back.

"Hell, I was younger than 'er when I got lost. Nine days in the woods eatin' berries, wiping my ass with poison oak."

"They found you?"

"…My old man was off on a bender with some waitress. Merle was doin' a sentence in Juivy. Didn't even know I was gone." Daryl paused, looking at me for a split second. "Made my way back, went straight into the kitchen and made myself a sandwich. No worse for wear. 'Cept my ass itched somethin' awful."

Andrea and I snorted, causing Daryl to smile. "I'm sorry." Andrea laughed. "Sorry, that is a terrible story." She persisted to cackle.

"Only difference is Sophia has people lookin' for her. I'd call that an advantage…"

"Maybe." I said.

XXX

A rustle in the bushes caused us to stop. Daryl gaped through the scope of his crossbow, hunting for the source of the noise. The three of us crouched down as we headed even deeper into the forest.

We emerged into what appeared to be a campsite. As we walked along, a large oak tree shook violently, agitating me. I stuck close to Daryl, clinging onto his shoulder as we dawdled around the tree. He didn't seem to be bothered by it.

"The hell?"

Right there, hanging in the tree by a noose, was a Walker. He clawed at us, growling and swinging. As we were but a mere stone's throw from it, we caught sight of its legs. Well, I guess I should say his bloody bones. The skin was picked off, no doubt by other Walkers.

Daryl got closer to it, so I let go of him and stayed back with Andrea. The two of us peered at the Walker in both dread and disturbance, flashing our lights in its festering features.

""Got bit. Fever hit. World gone to shit, might as well quit." Dumbass didn't shoot himself in the head." Daryl said. "Just turned himself into a big swingin piece of bait. And a mess…"

Andrea hunched over, looking like she were about to vomit. Irresolute on what to do, I kneaded her back tenderly with my hands, hoping to tranquil her want to upchuck.

"You alright?" Daryl called back. Andrea coughed, shrugging my hands away.

"Just trying not to puke." She said.

"Go ahead if you gotta."

"I'm fine. Let's just… Talk about something else for a moment. How'd you learn to shoot?"

"Gotta eat; that's one thing." Daryl said. "One thing us and the Walkers have in common. We're the closest thing to food he's seen since he turned. Just look at 'im. Hangin' like a piñata. Other Geeks came along and ate his legs."

Andrea lost it. She spewed up any undigested food from lunch. I had to clench my nose shut to keep from doing the same. It wasn't so much from the Walker. It was spectating that made it bad.

"I thought we were changing the subject." Andrea moaned.

"Call that payback for laughin' 'bout my "itchy ass"." Daryl scoffed. I giggled, removing my hand from my nose. "I see you didn't puke."

I shook my head, smirking. "No, I'm not bothered by the smell."

"That so?"

"Yeah."

"Hm. Let's head back." Daryl said.

"Aren't you going to-" Andrea motioned to the Walker, still hanging in the tree.

"No. Ain't hurtin' nobody." He contradicted. "Ain't wastin' an arrow either. Made his choice. Opted it out. Let 'im hang."

Andrea advanced towards the Walker, who went feral at her living flesh. Daryl and I watched her.

"You wanna live now or not?" Daryl asked her. "Just a question."

"An answer for an arrow." She replied. "Fair?"

"Mhmm."

"I don't know if I wanna live. Or if I have to… Or it's just a habit."

"Not much of an answer." Daryl said. He aimed his crossbow at the Walker's forehead, shining the light directly in its eyes. He pulled the trigger, and I watched the arrow as it penetrated through his skull.

"Waste of an arrow…"

We turned back towards the highway, but Daryl lugged me off the trail for a bit. "Need to talk to you."

"Go ahead." We stopped under another oak tree.

"Back at the CDC… When we kissed… Why'd you pull away?" He asked me.

"I… It didn't seem right." I told him.

"Well… Did you like it?"

I don't know… Did I like it, or just the idea? I didn't know how to answer. My head began to convulse without me doing it. I backed away from him, feeling rattled. I didn't answer him. I scampered away, looking for Andrea.

XXX

The three of us were silent on the way back to the freeway. Once we arrived, Andrea strolled off, presumably to the RV. I went to follow her, but yet again, Daryl pulled me away.

We began to walk away from the group, though I dissociated myself from him.

"You never answered my question." Daryl clamored over to me. I knew he was angry.

"What was I supposed to say?" I shot back.

"Happy or not."

"I… I don't know, okay?"

I heard Daryl snort, and I froze in my tracks, turning back around to the RV. I rolled my eyes, and stormed to camp. Daryl caught up to me, halfway there, so, I headed down the other way.

Before I knew it, Daryl's hands were clamped around my shoulders, holding me in place as I had my back to him. I tried to shrug away, but deep down, I liked him touching me.

"I don't think it was right…" I finally answered. "There's too much of an age gap, and-"

"Those rules ain't applyin' anymore." Daryl said.

"I don't care. My dad's a cop for God's sake."

Daryl spun me around, and he studied my face. "You look a hell of a lot different." He said.

"Thanks…" I pulled away from him, and walked over to the side of the road. "But… I don't get it. Why would Jenner do that? Make me feel like I had something worth living for… And then just take it from me…?"

"Dunno."

Daryl was right behind me again. I could feel his warm breath down my neck, and I shuddered with contentment from it.

"Did you kiss me because you liked me or you wanted some ass?" I sarcastically asked him.

"I wasn't really drunk at that moment… I knew you were, so I took my chances." He said.

"Those chances were ruined," I said. "You're making me feel vulnerable."

"What'll make you not feel that way?"

"If you left me alone."

Daryl clapped his hand on my shoulder, pulling me away from the side of the road.

"C'mon." He said, letting go of me. "Better get back."

XXX

As soon as we returned to our spot on the highway, I climbed into an empty vehicle, making a provisional bed out of blankets and a few pillows on the backseat. I locked the doors, reclining on the blankets. I lit a small lantern, setting it on 'dim' as I pulled out _The Mist_. Opening the book to the first page, I silently read the story.

_This is what happened. On the night that the worst head wave in northern New England History finally broke-the night of July 19-the entire western Maine region was lashed with the most vicious thunderstorms I have ever seen._

_We lived on Long Lake, and we saw the first of the storms beating its way across the water towards us just before dark. For an hour before, the air had been utterly still. The American flag that my father put up on our boathouse in 1936 lay limp against its pole. Not even its hem fluttered. The heat was like a solid thing, and it seemed as deep as sullen quarry-water. That afternoon the three of us-_

I was interrupted and snapped out of my zone as a knocking came to the glass window. I looked up, seeing Andrea as she peered inside. Reaching across, I unlocked the doors, and she entered the car.

"Hey." She calmly said to me.

"Hi."

"What were you are Daryl talking about?" She asked me.

"Oh… Y'know… Stuff."

"Like what."

"Stuff kind of stuff."

"Mhmm." She gave me the 'you're doing a shitty job at hiding your secret' look.

"If I tell you, you have to promise to keep it a secret."

"Promise."

"Okay." I took a deep breath. Once I released it, the pressure still lingered. "He kissed me at the CDC."

Andrea smiled, nodding her head. "Wow… That's… Wow."

"And I ran out on him."

"No. Honey, you don't do that to a guy. That's like throwing them away."

"I wasn't thinking at the moment."

"Anyways, then what happened?"

"Well tonight, he asked me if I liked it. I told him I didn't know, and that I felt uncomfortable. He asked what would make me comfortable, and I told him to leave me alone."

"And then?"

"I came here."

Andrea frowned, disappointed at my actions. Shaking her head, she exited the car. I watched her slumping off through the windshield. I relocked the cars, sitting in the back seat, rethinking my actions.

"Open the door."

I looked over at the passenger side window, where Daryl was now standing. If possible, I slid even further away, shaking my head.

"Open the damn door or I'll smash the window!"

"You're bluffing."

"I mean it."

I sighed, outstretching my hand to switch the lock over. _Click_. Daryl opened the door beside me in the back, and slid in. I bit my lip, and cracked my book back open.

_-had gone swimming, but the water was no relief unless you went out deep. Neither Steffy nor I wanted to go deep because Billy couldn't. Billy is five. _

_ We ate a cold supper at five-thirty, picking listlessly at ham sandwiches and potato salad out on the deck that faces the lake. Nobody seemed to want anything but Pepsi, which was in a steel bucket of ice cubes._

Daryl wrapped his arm around me, forcing me to drop my book. "What the hell is _wrong _with you?" I screamed as I tried to pull away, like before, but he claimed it was to keep me warm. I was already plenty warm with my blankets.

Still squirming, he wrapped his other arm around me, towing me to his chest. The first thing I heard was his heartbeats. I forthwith stopped trying to twist away, concentrating on the thuds.

I lifted my head up to him, to speak, but before I could, his lips crashed into mine.

I would've pulled away, but his arms were too tight. Daryl ended the kiss, and he released me. I slid across the back seat, pushing the door open. I resigned from the car, skulking back towards the RV. I felt like a jerk. Daryl was a good person, and I was shutting him down.

I felt the sudden urge to cry, mainly because of how poorly I was treating Daryl. I didn't want it to be like one of those relationships where the girl purposely uses the guy, and only wants him because he saved her or something. I didn't want Daryl to think that about me, that I was just going to throw him away, and then come back to him, making him look worthless and soft. That wasn't what I wanted.

Him looking soft and cowardly to everyone was more important to me than having a romantic relationship with him.

I looked over my shoulder, back to Daryl, who was still sitting in the car. He was scrutinizing me. I had never been desired by someone this much. I smiled sadly, and paced back to the car. Daryl opened the door, and I launched myself at him. He caught me, and slammed the door shut as we amorously kissed.

"If we're gonna do this, I have some rules." I said between kisses. "One, no sex. Two, no one can know. _**And, **_try not to make this too obvious."

**AN: WOOT! I hope that wasn't too bad. I'm trying not to make Lucy seem like Allison, and I don't want to make Daryl out of character too much. **

**And to the person who I told what will happen, I have a plan for you know what. **

**Why I picked **_**The Mist**_** for the excerpt. Several of the Walking Dead stars were portrayed characters in the movie. **

**And it's an absolutely amazing book.**

_**The Mist**_** c Stephen King**


	15. Chapter 15

**AN: FFFFF! My Chemical Romance broke up! * sobs * **

**They better have a good reason for ruining a whole crap load of people's lives. **

_**Chapter 15**_

The sun's ray's shot through the glass windows like little candles. My back was inelastic from sleeping in such a cramped space. I was compressed between Daryl and his arms around my back, preventing me from falling off the seat.

I wished at that moment that I were older. If I was, I'd be able to do a hell of a lot more things with Daryl. For now, it had to be mild. Three years. Only three more years until I'd be eighteen, and declared a legal adult.

Daryl altered his position beside me, rousing to greet the morning. His eyes cracked open, peering into my irises.

"We should get goin'." He mumbled.

"I don't wanna."

XXX

We all climbed into the vehicles, getting ready to head to the farm. I rode in the RV, though I wanted to be with Daryl. However, we both established that that would rouse suspicion

I put my things together, throwing them into the RV. It was torrid under the sun, so I pulled my hair back into a messy bun and took off my over shirt I had put on earlier, so I was left with my baggy navy blue tank top and a pair of shorts. I had my old worn-in brown Converses, which was the only pair of shoes I had other than a pair of gray Toms.

Daryl watched me out of the corner of his eyes, and I felt my face heating up even more than it was already. Blushing, I slipped into the RV, and I sat in the front with Dale, trying to hide my smile.

Daryl was focused on the road again, so I snapped back into what was going on here.

I stared out of the side window, waiting for us to leave. Dale turned the key in the ignition, and the RV roared to life. I could hear the sounds of Daryl's motorcycle through the walls of the RV, and we followed him.

I watched the trees swaying in the wind as we drove past them. Occasionally, we passed one or two straggling Walkers at a time, but we just ignored them.

We came to wheat fields, impeding our speed. Cattle grazed in the fields, amazing me for it had been months since I've seen livestock other than squirrels, and those were dead most of the time.

A large, beautiful white, classic southern farmhouse came into view. Once Daryl halted, Dale hit the brakes, and killed the engine. Suddenly, people exited the house, and two of them climbed off of the porch, coming to meet us.

My parents.

Pushing the door of the RV open, I jumped out, into the dirt path. "Is he alive?" I asked. Carol, Dale, and Andrea came out. Daryl remained on his motorcycle, watching my parents.

"Yeah," my mother said. "He's gonna be okay. He'll pull through; thanks to Hershel and his folks." Leering, I ran over to my parents, joining in for a large embrace from both of them.

"C'mon," my father said. "Let's go see your brother."

Nodding, I pulled away from the arms around me, and the three of us climbed the steps to the porch, and pushed through a screen door.

I didn't pay attention to the furniture as we passed. All I cared about was my brother. My parents took me into a small bedroom beside the living room.

Carl was fast asleep on the bed, with the covers pulled up to his waist. A large gauze bandage was stuck to his chest, covering the gunshot. I thought back to when I got shot. I was only grazed, yet it hurt like hell. I couldn't imagine how much pain my brother was in once he got shot.

The three of us sat on the bed with him, causing the mattress to sink from all the bodies. "When we got here last night, he was awake for a little bit," my father said. "He was asking for you. Why didn't you come here when Glenn and T-Dog did?"

"I… I was busy."

"Doing what?"

"Looking for Sophia."

"_Dad?_" A cracked, quiet voice said.

We looked down at my brother. Carl's eyes were cracked open, and he struggled to sit up. My mother gently pushed him down, and his eyes came to me. "_Lucy?_"

"It's me, Carl," I said, cupping his face. He let off a small smile as I kissed his forehead.

"_Is Sophia…" _Carl paused, trying to clear his voice. "Is she ok?"

"She's fine, Carl," my father lied. Clearly, he didn't want to distress my brother out anymore than he already was.

I heard boots clacking off of the wooden floorboards, and I looked over to see the same girl that had taken my mother from me. She was standing in the doorway.

"Funeral's startin'," she said in her thick southern accent.

"Who died?" I asked her.

"Friend of ours. Otis. Died helpin' your friend Shane."

I instantly got the vibe that Shane had something to do with his death.

"I'm sorry."

"Thank you." The woman entered the room, and extended her hand to me. I took it, and we shook hands.

"Name's Maggie Greene. My dad's Hershel, my sister, the little blondie, is Beth. Her boyfriend is Jimmy, and the older woman is Patricia, Otis's girlfriend."

"Nice to meet you, Maggie," I smiled. "Lucy Grimes."

XXX

I didn't go to the funeral. I wanted to linger back in the bedroom, just incase Carl came-to and needed something. I perched on a padded wooden chair after I pulled it to the side of the bed.

"I'm so glad you're okay," I said, keeping my voice low. "I'm sorry I wasn't there with you."

I ran my thumb over his damp forehead.

"The day Gram died… I was only a few years old, and I hated everyone after she passed away. I wouldn't eat, and I was always so sad. Whenever Mom or Dad tried to talk to them, I'd just scream at them. But… The day you were born," I paused, smiling at my unconscious brother. "It was like that dark cloud was never there. I loved you; I always wanted to be with you.

"I loved you up until our trip to the Grand Canyon; then I wished you were never born."

I heard voices, and I looked out of the window seeing everyone walking away from where the memorial was. I bent down and kissed Carl's forehead before departing the room.

I grabbed the doorknob, and quietly closed the door. One I heard it click, I found my way outside. I sat down on the porch steps, watching everyone run around.

"Hi."

My eyes landed on Maggie's sister, Beth, who stood before me. She looked to be the same age as me, though maybe a little older.

"Hi," I said back.

Beth extended her hand like her sister did, and I shook it. "I'm Beth," she told me.

"I know." Pulling back, Beth wiped her brow with the back of her arm.

"Are you the little boy's sister?" Beth asked me.

"Yeah."

"It was pretty scary last night."

"I bet. I could never stand he sight of Carl's blood."

"That's his name?"

I nodded. Beth sat down next to me, and we ended up talking about a lot of interesting things. I learned that her family had a strong Irish back round, and that they were very religious.

I learned that she was sixteen. I learned that her mother, Annette, and her stepbrother Shawn died and turned. However, she and her family believe that they're just "sick", and that there's a cure. I didn't argue with her. I didn't want to start a fight.

We both weren't girly girls, liking simple clothing. We didn't care for popularity, though I had a feeling that she was a 'candidate' for it.

It felt nice talking to someone my age again.

XXX

"Lucy, honey. You need to come out."

My mother stood behind me as I sat on the bed with Carl again. I was there for half an hour. I wanted him to wake up again, badly.

"We need your help."

My ears perked up. "With what?"

"A-uh," she cleared her throat. "A Walker is in the well."

XXX

The bloated Walker grabbed at us, impotently as Glenn, Maggie, Andrea, Shane, Dale, T-Dog, and my mother and I stood around top of the well. The Walker even grew gills.

"Looks like we've got ourselves a swimmer," Dale commented.

"How do we deal with this?" I asked.

"Shoot him?" T-Dog suggested.

"Woah, no," Maggie said, stepping forward.

"If that _thing _hasn't already contaminated the water; blowing its brains out will to the trick," Andrea said.

"So how do we get it out?" I asked.

"We need bait."

XXX

Shane lowered a canned ham down into the well as we all watched. The Walker looked up, grabbed at the meat, but then let his hands fall.

"Well that didn't work," I muttered as we stood around.

"There's a reason the dead didn't come back and start raiding our cupboards," my mother mused.

"Yeah. If it ain't kickin' or squealin'…" T-Dog shook his head.

"We need live bait," Andrea concluded. All eyes turned to Glenn.

XXX

"All right. Don't worry. Gonna get you out of there in one piece," Shane said as he fastened the rope around Glenn's legs and waist.

"Get me out alive. That's what matters."

"You people are crazy," Maggie said.

"Tell me about it," I responded.

After roping the other end of the rope to the well pump, Glenn climbed into the well as Maggie gave spotters to us while we lowered him.

Next came the screaming.

The well pump broke out of the ground from Glenn's tonnage. The think rope brushed through my fingers, giving me a bad brush-burn. However, I held on tight.

We anchored ourselves to the ground, digging our heels into the ground as we tried to pull Glenn out.

His screaming grew louder, but not because of fear. He was almost to the top. I saw his head peeking up from the top, and he threw himself on the ground, catching his breath before standing up, placing his hands on his knees.

"Back to the drawing board," I muttered, standing up with everyone else.

"Says you." Glenn handed the rope to me, which Shane took.

Leering over the edge of the well, the Walker clawed at the air. Once I saw that Glenn had lassoed the rope around its waist amidst the chaos.

Better prepared now, we stood ready, tugging on the rope with all our strength. After quite some time- and running to retrieve a horse- we managed to get the Walker up… But. His bloated state prevented us to move him as he caught on the lip of the well.

Pulling again, we thought we had it. Suddenly, the Walker ripped in half, spewing guts and carnage everywhere as its lower half toppled into the well.

_Nope, nothing to do here_.

Clutching my churning stomach, I turned away from the Walker, slipping back to camp. I immediately heard footsteps behind me, so thinking it was my mother; I turned around, extending my arms to hug her.

I froze, seeing that it was not my mother- but Shane. I pulled my arms back, just as my flesh was about to come in contact with his.

"Hey, Luc'." He said, coolly.

"Hi." I said back, crossing my arms, hoping it only looked like I was stretching, not yearning for an embrace.

"Can we talk for a moment?" He asked. I nodded, and the two of us walked under a maple tree, which happened to be where Otis's memorial was earlier. "I ain't stupid. I know what you and the redneck have been doin'."

"I hate Daryl," I quickly lied, covering up our… Passionate interests with each other. "What do you claim we were doing?"

"Dale told me he saw you two gettin' all close and snuggly in a car."

"Honestly, don't be a _putz_." I said, placing my hands on my hips. I cocked my head, smirking at Shane. "What are you even implying?"

"You need to stop. It ain't right." He said.

"You know what 'ain't right'?" I spat, stepping away from him. "You and my mom having _sex_! What if she's pregnant?" I ranted. "You don't belong to her. And you aren't my dad, or Carl's. Stop trying! Just _stop!_ You're a lying, deceiving, piece of shit.

"You made my whole family think my dad was dead. You left him in that hospital _for dead!_ You didn't even try!" I stopped, spitting at his feet. "You were too egotistic to think about his family. You just wanted us for yourself." I was laughing by now, the way a psycho would. "And you say he's your best friend? Not to mention you attacked my mom at the CDC."

Shane stepped closer, latching onto my shoulder. He shoved me against the maple tree, knocking a few of the rocks, which belonged to the memorial, off. They landed by my feet, stopping in the ground below, stirring the dust.

"You think I did it because I was _selfish_?" Shane growled, a little too close for comfort.

"That's what I said."

"I did it to make y'all happy. I thought Rick was dead."

"So your idea was to lie! You should've been honest! You sho-"

I was cut off as Shane shoved his hand over my mouth. I felt his fingers growing tighter around my lips, squeezing my jaw. There would definitely be marks. An apprehensive cry struggled to escape the cracks of his fingers. Using his free hand, he pinned both of my wrists with each other, and straddled me against the tree with his legs and the rest of his body.

"Trust me, _Lucile_; you're in no position to be telling people how to live their lives. You ain't the best person in this group. Fact, you're probably the worst." He spat. I began to tug at my wrists, but he tightened his grip. Visions of what I thought Guillermo had done to me plagued my mind, and I began to sob as I tried to push him off of me.

That macabre bastard just smirked as he continued. "You got know idea what kind of things I could say to your folks, 'bout the shit you've done. How you just _let_ that redneck touch you. How _you_ kept secrets from them. Think you parents would like that?" He leaned into my ear, growling the way a vicious bear would when they are seconds from killing their prey; which was me. Shane was the cat who just caught a mouse, diverting himself with me before devouring. "I'm getting _real_ sick of your bullshit. If you weren't Rick's daughter, don't think for one moment I wouldn't kill you

"You're a slut, throwin' yourself at Daryl like that." By now, I was quaking under the pressure of his weight. My head bobbed up and down ever so slightly, though rapidly, as he himself started to shake in vexation himself. His fingernails felt like individual honed blades lacerating my skin. "I _should_ kill you."

I endeavored to move my head forward, but Shane collided my head with the tree. He repeatedly pummeled my head against the tree. I saw fire in his eyes. Fire that would mercilessly dispatch you. Black dots danced across my vision like small children, accumulating even more each slam, and I was pretty sure the back of my head was bleeding.

"Hell're you doin'?!"

Shane's head snapped back to Daryl as he stood before us. My head remained restrained against the tree. I felt Shane's clasp on me go slack, only a modest amount however, so I took that moment to do what girls do best.

Gathering my strength, I swung my leg out, catching him in the groin. Shane groaned as he bent over, huffing from the pain, all the while letting go off my wrists and mouth. I rammed myself into his side, slamming him into the dirt.

I felt Daryl coming to my side as I spat on Shane. "Asshole." I muttered as we walked away.

"You ok?" Daryl asked.

Shrugging, I rubbed my elbows. It still felt like Shane was there, breathing on my face, pinning me. Attempting to take my life. "He was confronting me about… Us… A-and he said he was going to kill me."

"Glad I came back when I did." Daryl said.

"Me too… How was your search?" I asked.

"Meh… Found an ol' house. Cupboard with blankets; coulda been from Sophia. Freshly eaten food…"

"That's good, right?"

"Dunno…" Daryl stopped in his tracks, and so did I. "Have somethin' for you."

He looked around, making sure no one was in sight, and carefully pulled something out of his jean pocket. Daryl grabbed my right hand, gently prying my fingers away. Placing his hand on top of mine, he opened his palm, and I felt something brushing in my hand.

He removed his hand from mine, and I gazed down on what appeared to be a white rose. It was a little crumpled from being in his pocket, but it was still beautiful.

"It's a Cherokee Rose. Found it out there." He explained. Daryl went on telling me the tale of the Cherokee Rose, said to bloom as a symbol of hope from the tears of the Cherokee mothers who lost their children to disease and starvation along the Trail of Tears, when the white man drove the Indians off their lands. "I brought one for Carol, for Sophia."

"That's sweet." I said, still admiring the flower.

"And… I thought about you. For hope that your brother will pull through recovery. Y'know, always that shitty chance he could…"

"I know he'll get better," I said. "He just needs rest now."

"Flower's already workin'." Daryl smirked.

"Yeah."


	16. Chapter 16

**AN: Three more mortals have been told what is to happen, but they are forbidden to tell anyone. **

**And to you, Guest. No, I hate Twilight. And she obviously had to have read Twilight to know how she writes. And seeing as that she's a **_**#1 New York Times **_**best selling author, your point is invalid. If you actually read the author's notes, you'd know what's going on. And you think Lucy's weak? Hm… She's fifteen, practically a child… Living in an apocalypse. No shit she's 'weak'.**

**You know, I didn't write this just to be yelled at. Seriously, your words have no effect whatsoever, so save your breath. You might actually need it some day. **

_**Chapter 16**_

_The uneasy cold night air sent ripples through my shirt, grabbing onto my skin. I wish I could see where we were. My lousy mother told me we were on a highway, heading out of Atlanta. _

_ I rubbed my arms, raking my fingers over my sweater. I ignored my hair as it whipped around my face. My eyes stung from the wind and from relentlessly sobbing every night, mourning the loss of my father. _

_ I felt someone bumping into me, almost sending me to the ground. "Dammit girl, watch where the hell you're goin'!"_

_ "I'm sorry, Mr. Peletier," I said, slumping. "I really am."_

My fingers began to sting as I vigorously scrubbed shirt after shirt, pants after pants, etc. in the wooden tub while Carol clipped the clothing to the clothesline to dry.

My hair sat in a messy bun, and every time I hung my head to focus on washing, a few strands of loose hair fell over my hair.

The flakey detergent bubbled in the water, smashing into the clothing when I dropped it into the bucket. Water splashed on my charcoal grey v-neck, to my jean shorts, and all the way down to my old converses, but I didn't care. It was water, big deal. I heard a tent unzipping, and I turned around, watching my mother as she emerged from our family tent. I took one of my wet hands out of the water, waving to her with a small smile on my face before returning to washing.

"Mornin'," Dale said to her as he walked by.

My mother walked towards us, taking one of Carl's shirts out of the basket for clean clothing. "Can't believe I slept in," she mumbled as she hung up the shirt.

"Don't worry about it," I said to her.

"Yeah. You must've needed it," Carol said to her. "You feeling all right?"

"Next time wake me, okay?" she asked, ignoring her. "Especially on laundry day." My mother reached back into the basket, pulling out a few shirts and a pair of jeans.

"We can manage," Carol assured her. I nodded with the older woman. "I had an idea I wanted to run by you."

"What's that?"

"Well, that big kitchen got me thinking," Carol said. I looked at her, wringing out a shirt before dunking it into the basket. "I wouldn't mind cooking in a real kitchen again. Maybe, if we all pitch in, we could cook dinner for Hershel and his family tonight."

I looked to my mother, who stared at Carol, who shrugged. "Kinda looking for things to keep my mind occupied."

"Well, after everything they've done for us it seems to be the least we could do," My mother took down my dark peach colored flannel, handing it to me to make more room. It was dry, having been put up a last night. I slid my arms through the sleeves, and rolled them up.

"Mind extending the invitation?" Carol asked. "Just feel more right coming from you."

"How so?"

"You're Rick's wife," Carol told her. "Sorta makes you our unofficial First Lady."

I rolled my eyes, and snorted, all sarcastically. "Geez, what am I?"

"You'll get there soon enough," Carol said, patting my back. "Don't you worry."

"I think the secretary will go for you," my mother said, grinning.

I snickered, mangling another shirt.

XXX

I wandered through the stables, admiring the few horses. I halted at deep, chocolaty brown coated one, petting the mane with my right hand. The horse snorted, stepping back from the foreign touch. I beamed at the beautiful creature, slowly extending my other hand, wrapping it around the horse's large neck.

The creature gave in, and I buried my head into its forehead, nuzzling him like a mother dog would to her pups. He smelled like the hay in his stall. The scent was almost… Comforting.

I pulled my head away, and picked out a strand of hay stuck in his mane.

"What're you doin' in here?"

I snapped away from the horse, staring at Daryl as he entered the stall beside me. He grabbed a saddle, and heaved it on the back of a female brown horse.

"Laundry's all caught up," I finally answered. I pulled my hands away from the horse, and tucked them into my back pockets. I crossed my fingers in side the denim, feeling nervous. "Just passin' the time before I find something else to do."

"Wanna come with?" Daryl asked me as he fastened the saddle.

_Do I?_

I looked back at the chocolate brown horse, fondling his back. "Best if I don't," I said, walking to the opposite end of the animal. "After my little encounter with Shane yesterday, it may not be the smartest thing."

"Suit yourself."

I watched as he climbed onto the now saddled horse. He left through the wide doors, leaving them open.

Once he was out of site, I returned to camp, seeking my mother.

XXX

"Never thought I'd be so happy to see a potato," Carol said as we women stood around- except Andrea-, cooking dinner for Hershel's family.

"Just happy not to be roasting squirrels over a fire again tonight," my mother stated.

"Can't handle real man food?" I teased as I ran a peeler over carrot after carrot.

"Sure," she said, throwing a cucumber at me. I caught it in the air, moments before it hit the floor. Sticking my tongue out at her, I added the (in my opinion) disgusting member of the gourd family to my list of things to be peeled. "That's it."

Patricia- Otis's ex-girlfriend- reached across from the kitchen island, grabbing my carrots. I took in the sounds of hard food being tossed into pots, clinking like rocks on glass.

Maggie went through the cabinets, taking out a number of ceramic plates. She stacked them on the counter, and shifted through the drawers for silverware.

I felt a sharp sting on my hand, drawling blood onto a carrot. "Shit," I cursed, dropping the peeler and carrot.

"What's wrong?" my mother asked, coming to my side. "What'd you do?"

"Nothing," I told her, wrapping my hand in a paper towel. "I'm fine."

Beth grabbed my hand, gave me the 'look'. She took me down a hallway, out through the living room, another hallway, up a flight of stairs, and finally, the restroom.

"Sit," she ordered as we stepped inside of the small room.

I sat on the toilet, and watched her as she fumbled through the medicine cabinet. She pulled out peroxide, gauze, and medical tape.

She uncorked the peroxide, and grabbed my hand. However, I instantly pulled back as she started to pour, letting little drops of peroxide drip onto the floor.

"It's just a cut. It doesn't need to be cleaned out."

"I don't care."

Beth pulled my hand back, and dumped the liquid on my hand. It didn't bubble. "Told you so."

She ignored me, and wiped my hand with toilet paper. My blood stained the paper, and Beth scrunched her nose at it before tossing it into the garbage.

Picking up the gauze, she finally wrapped my hand before securing it with the medical tape.

"There," Beth said, stepping back to admire her work. "All better."

"Jeez. You should go into the medical field," I mused.

She smirked, and she cleaned up the medical supplies before heading back downstairs.

_BLAM!_

The sound of a gunshot erupted through the house, though too distant to be from inside. The woman from the kitchen exited, curiously looking at the door. I didn't hesitate to run to the door, and throw myself out.

I knew something was wrong…

I could tell as soon as the cold breeze hit my face.

Everyone from inside of the house joined me- even Hershel. We all took off into a dead sprint towards what appeared to be my father, Shane, T-Dog, Glenn, and a Walker.

No, not a Walker.

Daryl.

XXX

We all sat down at the dinner tables, save my father and Daryl. I waited patiently for my father to come out, but he never did.

My palms began to sweat, but I didn't know why. I rubbed my hands across my shorts.

I didn't touch the plate of food in front of me. I sat cramped at the 'kiddie' table with Beth, Jimmy, Glenn, and Maggie.

"Daddy doesn't like it when food goes to waste," Beth whispered in my ear. "Especially now."

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, jabbing a carrot with my fork. Once the carrot was in my mouth, my saliva felt warm and sickening… I had a hard time swallowing as my throat went dry.

I took a sip of my water, but I almost dropped it as my hands began to shake…

_Get a hold of yourself,_ I told myself.

Then I saw him staring at me. Like he owned me… After yesterday, Shane had been watching me like a hawk as we sat around the camp for dinner. I could see his face illuminated by the fire.

And he was doing it again now.

If we weren't in Hershel's house, I would've stood up, broken my glass, and stabbed Shane with a glass shard. Anger was causing me to withdraw from eating properly.

A door opened, and my father appeared in the kitchen. We all stared at him. He looked calm, but his eyes averted straight at me. _I know_, his eyes said.

It felt like I was being choked.

"Lucile," he said, quietly. "Come here a second."

I bit my lip, and I slid the chair out from the table. Standing up, I slowly walked to him, not bothering to push my chair back in.

My father's hand placed in between my shoulder bones, guiding me out of the room. He pushed the front door open, and we sat on the porch.

"What've you and Daryl been doin'?"

My face grew hot, and my conscience told me to lie. But I couldn't…

"I- We… I… I… We… At the CDC… I'm so sorry!" Tears ran down my face, and I wanted to just shrink.

"Dammit… You know better. I taught you better!" he frowned, and narrowed his eyes at me.

"I-I know!"

"I guess you don't... No, enough. No more. None. You go in there, and you tell him that it's over. You're to stay away from him. You are to help your mother with chores until she says you're dismissed."

_That's it? _I thought.

I felt a pain in my stomach, and it felt as if someone struck a match, lighting my body on fire. "I… I don't feel good."

"That's the guilt," he said, standing up.

XXX

I pulled over a wooden chair to the side of his bed. My father stood on the outside of the door, listening in on our conversation.

I think just by the look on my face Daryl knew what happened.

After staring at each other for five quiet minutes, I finally spoke up. "It just isn't right…" my voice cracked.

With that, I got up, and stood by the door, moving my hand down to the knob.

"I'm sorry…" I mumbled. "We can't do it anymore…"

I opened the door, and I stepped out into the hallway, shutting the door behind me. My father tried to pull me in for a sympathetic hug, but I pushed him away, running down the hallway.

I didn't even care about my supper. I just ran out the door. I ran through the camp. I ran through the fields. I ran…

I ran to the barn.

I stopped, crying out in anguish, clutching my hair. I kicked the dirt, and I swore at the moon. In the dark, I climbed the ladder to the hayloft.

I couldn't stop hyperventilating.

A retched, though familiar smell hit my nose over the hay. I stopped crying, and I did the thing I shouldn't have…

I looked down.

A scream escaped my lips at the Walkers. They looked up at me, and clawed in the air. I screamed again, and I turned back to dash back to my mother.

Suddenly, I went down of the hayloft as my foot caught on a loose board. Pain swarmed through my leg, as I sat on the board, trying to loosen my foot. Instantaneously, the board broke, flying down to the Walkers.

I felt myself falling through the air, and an animal like cry escaped my body.

**AN: That's it for our lovebirds. I never said how long it would last, but be on your guard for a punching aftermath between two characters in chapters soon to come.**


	17. Chapter 17

_**Chapter 17**_

_"I didn't realize that graduating from middle school was such a big deal," my father said to me as we drove through the mountains in his police cruiser._

_ "It isn't," I told him. "I don't see the point in this… It's a load of crap."_

_ "Your friends want to spend their evening with you. That has to count for something."_

_ "I don't even want to go," I muttered. "Screw Mindy. She probably has plenty of people there. What's one absence gonna do?"_

_ My father didn't say anything. We pulled into a long, narrow stone driveway, which trailed up to a white, classic 1800's Victorian. Figures moved among the windows, casting shadows on the ground. Gray smoke rose from both the redbrick chimneys._

_ "Well, good-bye, then," I sighed as I grabbed the latch to the door._

_ My father gently clasped his hand on my other. Our eyes met, and I caught what appeared to be concern in his irises._

_ "If anything happens, call us."_

_ "Okay Dad."_

_ "I love you."_

_ "Love you, too."_

A hand latched onto my bandaged one, and it felt as if my arm had been yanked out of the socked. A Walker grasped my bad ankle, and a tingling pain erupted as I kicked his head away.

I looked up, and a flashlight shined in my eyes. Glenn looked at the Walkers, and then back to me. He dropped the flashlight, and his other hand came down to my free arm.

I sobbed as my leg screamed in pain again, and Glenn struggled to pull me up. Every time I came close to the hayloft, Glenn faltered, and almost dropped me.

The weight of his hand on mine vanished from my left hand, and my fingernails scrapped across the wood. I screamed, and I dug my nails into a crack, attempting to heft my entire torso up. Glenn pulled the rest of me back onto the wood.

"You weren't supposed to see this."

Flipping our head backs, Maggie stood, stunned.

"You're crazy!" I shouted, standing up. "I almost got killed!"

"I'm sorry," she said, quietly.

"What is this?" Glenn shouted, pointing down at the Walkers.

"I… I can't say."

"Hell you can't!" I shouted at the farmer's daughter.

"Please… Just don't tell anyone… Especially your dad."

XXX

In the morning, I walked to the chicken coop with my mother, holding chicken feed. I was untroubled to discover that Carl was now out of bed.

He ended up joining my mother and I…

The chickens squawked as we tossed the feed to them.

"Don't look so weary," Carl said to my mother.

"It's my job."

"No it's not," Carl said, picking up more seed. "You're a housewife."

My mother grabbed a handful of seeds, and threw them at my brother. "Oh yeah, punk?" Carl chuckled, ducking from the food. "You see my house around here?"

"Housewife…" she whispered to herself.

I heard a knocking, and I looked into the chicken coop, where Patricia stood, gathering eggs. We locked eye contact, and she smiled at me.

"That one doesn't have a mother."

I turned back to the chickens, and Carl was pointing to a rather small one. "Well, she might be somewhere else…" my mother said.

"No, she got eaten," My mother gave Carl a sad look. "Might've been used for food or somethin' else."

XXX

I didn't have a problem with helping my mother do the chores. I did them anyways before I was in trouble. It was built into my daily routine. My mother hardly seemed to care. She understood what young girls did… Or did she?

"You gonna go gun training with your father?" she asked me as we took down dry clothing from the clothes line.

"I doubt he'll let me…" I muttered. "This morning he issued a new law on my punishment… 'You are to stay in your mother's sight or else'," I mocked, rolling my eyes.

"He just cares about you…"

"Bull…"

"I don't want your brother to learn. But I think you're old enough to really get into it," she said. "After all, you learned the basics from your father when you were thirteen. And, you'll be sixteen in a few days."

"I'm surprised you even remembered… With everything going on."

"It's my job."

I smiled, and my mother pulled me in for a hug. "I love you. I'm so proud of you," she said.

"Love you, too."

XXX

"How the hell did this happen?" my mother angrily spat, dumping all the ammo out of a small handgun and shoving the bullets into her pocket.

"Well it's my fault," Dale said. "I let him into the RV. He said he wanted a Walkie- did you send him for one?" he asked my father.

"So, on top of everything else; he lied," my mother shot back, giving my brother a stern look. "What do you think?" she asked my father.

"Well, he wants to learn how to shoot."

"He asked me to teach him," Shane added. "It's none of my business, but I'm happy to do it. It's… It's your call."

_ Yeah, right_, I thought.

"Well I'm not comfortable with it," my mother said. My father looked at Carl, then to Shane, and back to my mother. "Oh don't make me out to be the unreasonable one here. Rick?"

"I know, I have my concerns too," he said. "But-"

"There's no 'but'!" my mother interrupted. "He was just **shot**! He's just back on his feet, and he wants a **gun**?"

"Better than him bein' afraid of them. There are guns in camp for a reason. He should learn how to handle them safely, same as Lucy."

"I've talked to Lucy, and I want her to learn," my mother said. "But I don't want Carl walking around with a gun."

"How can you defend that?" my father shot back. "We can't let him go around without protection."

"He's as safe as he'll ever be right here…. Look; everything you're saying makes perfect sense. It… feels wrong. I mean- I didn't feel good about him following you out into the woods. I wish I would've gone with my gut."

"He's growing up, thank God. We gotta start treating him more like an adult."

"Then he needs to act like it. He's not mature enough to handle a gun."

"I'm not gonna play with it, Mom," Carl interrupted, walking in front of our parents. "I-It's not a toy. I'm sorry I disappointed you. But I wanna look for Sophia. I wanna defend our camp. I can't do that without a gun."

"He's right," I said, coming to his defense.

"Shane's the best instructor I know," my father added. "I've seen him teach kids younger than Carl."

My mother hesitated. She knew she was loosing this battle. And I think that if I ever become a mother, I'd understand, too.

She looked my brother right in the eyes, and she gently, yet sternly gripped his face. "You will take this seriously. This goes for your sister, too," she paused, taking a quick glance at me. "You will behave responsibly. If I hear from anyone in this camp that you are not living up to our expectations-"

"They won't let you down," my father said.

"Yeah."

XXX

I sat in the passenger's seat of Shane's Hyundai, waiting for him. As much as I didn't want to, though, I forced myself to suffer through it. After all, the rest of the vehicles were full, and my mother wasn't up to the idea either, especially since she told me to stay away from him at the CDC.

And I never told her that he tried to kill me.

The door to the driver's seat opened, and Shane slid through the gap. He slammed the door shut, sending a loud bang echoing into my eardrums. Shane looked at me before turning the key in the ignition, and we pulled out with the other cars.

"You told him, didn't you?" I muttered. He didn't say anything. "Why?"

"I don't know," he said. "It just slipped, Lucy-Lu."

"That's bull," I said. "And don't call me that."

"Why?"

"That's a child hood name. I'm not a kid."

He grunted, and he slowed down the speed of the car, to a point where all the vehicles ahead faded from view.

"Why did you try to kill me?"

"Just watchin' out for a friends kid."

"I don't need you to _watch_ _out_ for me," I said. "Trust me. You've done nothing good for my family. _Ever_."

"Never?" Shane laughed. "_Never?_ Was it you that got your family out of King County? Was it you that made the call to go to the CDC, where a man in a suit 'fixed' your shitty eyes?"

"One," the tone in my voice began to get louder. "I'm sure we would've made it out, with or without your 'help'. Two; my_ dad_ made the call to go to the CDC, not you."

"Yeah, well… I had a say in it."

"Because my mom agreed with my dad and you wanted to get back on her good side so you could _bang _her! Like you tried to do,_ at the CDC!"_

His face grew red.

"My mom hates you. Even if my dad were to die for real, she'd never get back with you."

"Lori hates me? Didn't seem like she did when I 'banged' her in the woods or when she gave me a hell of a blow job."

I couldn't contain the anger anymore. Like a viper, my hands shot out, and I slammed his head into the steering wheel.

**BEEP!**

Shane grunted, and he tried to grab my hands. I lunged across the seat at him, and I pelted him as I hung off of him.

"**You son of a **_**bitch!**_" I screamed, slamming his head into the steering wheel once again. **BEEP!** "**That's my **_**mother!**_** Don't you**_** dare**_** say that about her!**"

I wrapped my arms around his neck, watching as he made a painful face when he tried to lift his head. Suddenly, a pair of hands latched around my biceps, and attempted to pull me off of Shane. However, all the anger and strength I was letting off was preventing me from loosening my grip.

More hands joined in, and by now I only had my left arm on Shane as I made the effort to swat the people away. They began to tug on me, and I felt my limb slip. As my arm retracted, my face smacked off the stick shift.

Before I could go off on Shane again, I was pulled out of the vehicle all the way. They tried to drag me away, but I wouldn't let them, even though they restrained me.

"_**You son of a bitch!**_" I repeated."_**You're gonna rot in hell! I'll kill you! I'll kill you!"**_

"Lucy!"

"_**I'll kill you!**_"

"_Lucy!"_

"_**I'LL KILL YOU!**_"

XXX

The glass bottles of the fences exploded from our gunshots. Carl was struggling, missing his target the little times he actually pulled the trigger. The rest of the time he was just aiming, and pretending to shoot.

My mother watched like a hawk behind him, giving him some pointers even though she didn't know much herself.

My bottle exploded as I pulled the trigger of my father's Revolver. I scowled at the slight kickback, but I managed to get use to it.

I was tempted to just aim at Shane and blow his brains out.

"What'd Shane say to you?" my mother whispered in my ear so I could hear it, but no one else.

"He claimed he was the one who made all the calls Dad did," I said. "He said… That you guys had sex, which I already knew about. He said you gave him 'good' blowjobs. Hearing him just say it like it was nothing just… Set me off."

"You can't do that. You can't just up and attack someone."

"But-"

"No buts. You're father and I raised you better."

"Stop saying that!" I said, no longer whispering. "All I grew up to was you fighting! That's all I learned from you! That's how you raised me! You two didn't start acting like parents until Carl was born, and then you started fighting _again _for two years. And a zombie Apocalypse had to stop it?"

A sad look appeared on my mother's face, and everyone looked up at us.

"Get back to trainin', guys," my father said.

XXX

My mother and I decided to go on a… Mother-Daughter walk around the camp. We ended up finding Hershel along the way, who was busy fixing a fence by the barn… I wonder why…

"Afternoon," my mother said to him as we approached.

Hershel stood up, rubbing his back. "I take it your kids did well?"

My mother looked back at the camp at Carl, who was of course bragging. "Lucy's a natural… Carl didn't do too bad himself."

"Be grateful you don't have two daughters. If only things were as simple as wantin' to shoot."

"I think Lucy's defiantly got some boy in her… And Carl's getting that chance thanks to you. I'm eternally grateful; for what you did and your hospitality," she paused. "We'll earn our keep."

"I appreciate that, but with Carl getting better, I imagine you'll be moving on soon," Hershel said, returning to his work for a second. "Fort Benning I hear?"

I felt a rock sinking in my stomach, and I think my mother felt the same way. "C'mon," she said, tugging on my arm as we departed from being the company of Hershel.

XXX

Hours had passed since Hershel informed us that he expected us to leave soon. My mother and I returned to laundry, though we did it with an unpleasant, gloomy look on our faces. Usually, I looked forward to laundry because it meant socializing with Carol and my mother. We had become the three women. Andrea… She hadn't been doing much to help out, but I didn't mind.

Andrea was a good friend, but too many people in the 'faction' would make it boring, and it just wouldn't seem like a close-knit bundle of friends.

And Andrea was gone anyways, having advanced gun training with Shane.

But before laundry, my mother got sick from the smell of meat. I was curious, but I didn't want to get involved.

She had a chat with Dale, and then Glenn came on the scene, leading into a small talk ending with him going into town for supplies. For my mother.

Today, laundry passed slowly. Carol wasn't helping, and my mother was upset about Hershel. For the first time ever, I wanted to get this done and go down to the stables with that beautiful chocolaty brown horse and _The Mist_, and just sit on the animal while I read.

I tried to clear my mind of the pleasant thought, and I pulled out a sleeveless flannel. Daryl's shirt.

I forced my mind to ignore the fact that it was his shirt, and that the flannel was just a rag… But it didn't work…

And slowly as I said, the laundry passed…

Suddenly, the gate to the fence swung open, and a very angry Maggie stormed in with a white bag. I noticed a large splotch of blood on her shirt.

"Hey!" she shouted, drawing my mother's attention.

"Maggie," Glenn said from behind. "Please!"

"We got your stuff!"

"Maggie, hang on! Please!"

Maggie shifted through the bags, and my mother beckoned her to come forward. "Why? Got nothin' to hide. We got your special delivery right here! We got your lotion, special conditioner, your Soap Opera Digest!"

"Maggie!" my mother gasped.

"Next time you want something get it your own damn self!" Maggie spat. "We aren't your errand boys."

"Honey, I-" my mother looked down, and Maggie scraped something off the ground.

"And here's your _abortion pills_."

I stepped forward, giving my mother an addled look. "Why would you-" and then it hit me… She was pregnant…

My hand flew to my mouth, and I shook my head in shock. _It's Shane's,_ was the first thought that came to mind.

XXX

I sat across from my mother at the small table in our family tent. I held the pill packets in my hands in disgust.

"The blood on Maggie's shirt…" she said.

"She was attacked."

I turned around, seeing Glenn standing in the entry.

"You guys alright? How close was it?"

Glenn stepped in, standing beside me. "Pretty close…"

"I'm so sorry," my mother said, looking at Glenn with an apologetic expression. "I should have never asked you to do that."

"I offered."

"I thought the town was safe… If you hadn't come back-"

"But we did. I always do."

Tears slid down my mother's face as she smiled sadly.

"Morning After pills. Will they even work?"

"I don't know… I don't even know if I want them to…"

"Oh, and I got these two. Just incase." Glenn pulled out a small white bottle, and he handed them to my mother.

She smiled, and muttered something about vitamins. "That's a health choice…"

"Glad it's not mine," Glenn paused. "Lori, we're friends, right?"

"Well yeah, after everything we've been through…"

"I can't tell you what to do. I… could never tell you how to do something like that… But your choice… maybe you shouldn't make it alone."

Glenn gripped my shoulder, and we both gave my mother a small, yet meaningful smile. Before I knew it, Glenn was gone, and my mother and I just stared at each other.

"Are you gonna do it?" I asked her.

"I… I don't know…"

I slid the pills to her. "I just want to let you know that your choice is gonna impact this family…"

My mother gripped her neck.

Her hands found the way to the pills, and she popped them out of the packet. She shoved them in her mouth, and she flushed them down.

My mouth felt dry and my lips pursed. Tears slid down my face, knowing that my mother would do this… Kill a baby… I stood up, and ran out of the tent.

XXX

Night had fallen. Crickets chirped. My family slept. Everyone slept, except for Glenn on watch… and me.

I sat in our tent, curled into a fetal position. I couldn't sleep… I couldn't look at my mother…

Something deep inside of me from my fight with Shane still blazed. That anger, that grudge, it was still there. I sat up, and I slid off the mattress, careful not to wake my brother.

The mattress creaked, and Carl stirred. My breath hitched in my throat, but he went still. I let out that caught breath, and I crawled to my bags, rooting through them until I found my pocketknife.

The blade swished open, and the full moon reflected on the surface. I slipped on my Converses, and crept out of the tent.

Shane's tent was my destination…

I made sure Glenn wasn't watching before I snuck to his tent. A twig snapped, and I swore in my head. No one awoke…

The tent flap to Shane's tent was open by about an inch. I pulled the zipper, careful not to make too much noise when it opened. I slipped inside like a cat, and leisurely slithered to his cot.

If it was possible, he actually looked peaceful… Harmless in his sleep.

I raised the knife, and prepared to plunge it into his brain.

Almost at once, his eyes shot open.

**AN: DUN DUN DUN! Will Lucy be able to kill Shane? How will she deal with the future knowing all these secrets about Lori?**

**I'm so sorry for the misleading author's note! When I said aftermath, I just mean that later on, Lucy is going to get into a huge fight with someone, because of something that happened in previous chapters. I'm so sorry!**


	18. Chapter 18

**AN: This small bit concerns **_**Life Starts Now:**___**This story is set at MONTHLY updates, which are MEDIUM TO LARGE sized. Updates will be at the END OF THE MONTH. **

_**Chapter 18**_

I fell back, both hearing and feeling twigs snap from under the tent. The knife skidded across the ground, and I watched as Shane rubbed his face. He was bound to sit up at any moment, and be a dick…

As quiet as I could be, I slid across the floor on my behind, holding my breath in as I inched closer to the cot. I squirmed underneath the bedding, attempting to make myself a small as I could. The tarp- or what ever you call it- crackled as Shane stood up.

Before I could so much as blink, he was down on all fours, and instantly his hand shot out, wrapping around my neck.

"What the hell are you doin'?" he shouted as he pulled me out. "Tryin' to _kill me_?"

"No- I-"

His other hand joined the on around my neck. "Shut the hell up," he growled as he leaned in close. His breath was rotten, and I tried to move my head to the side to block the stench while I pushed my hands against his chest. "You're gonna listen to me, or I'll kill _you _for real this time_._"

"Go ahead," I croaked, taunting him. "My dad will-"

He released one of his hands, and I bit my lip, flinching as his hand smacked across my forehead. "I don't give a shit 'bout what Rick'll do. You _really_ think he'll do anything? After you and the Redneck had sex, he's hated you."

"We didn't have sex," I shot back. His hands tightened on my neck, and a raspy cough escaped my lips.

"Don't lie to me," he said. "If I ever catch you in here with so much as the inclination to say 'Hey', I will end you right where you stand. Do you understand?"

I struggled to move my head, but I managed to nod. "Good," he let go of my neck, and pulled me off the ground. Before I knew it, I was back on the ground, only this time, outside.

I had to stop getting myself into messes.

XXX

The morning came slow… I never fell back asleep once I crept back into my bed. And bruises were very visible on my neck. I wore a turtleneck to cover the marks, but unfortunately it was as hot as Hell out, and my shirt was black.

My mother just gave me a curious look when after I got dressed, and said "Shorts and turtlenecks don't go together."

Altogether, I rolled my eyes, and sat down with her at breakfast, kicking my muddy converses in the dirt. Her hand wrapped around my frizzy tresses on my head, and began to work her fingers through it. Before I could stop it, and fingers pulled down my collar. I yanked away, letting my unfinished hair fall back down to my shoulders.

"What happened?" she demanded. I shook my head, and stood up. Her hand gripped mine, and she pulled me back down. "_Tell me_."

"I don't know," I muttered. "It was there when I woke up."

And here came the quizzical look again. "You should be more careful when you sleep."

She knew I was lying. Of course, I was terrible at it.

And I let her redo my hair. I cringed as she pulled a strand of my hair from my scalp on accident, and my head leaned back as she tugged on my locks. "Stop moving," she said.

"Stop pulling."

More tugging came, but then it stopped. "There," my mother said, satisfied. My fingers flew to my hair, where I found it in a bun.

"I can do that myself," I muttered.

"I don't care," she chuckled.

My father came over with Carl, and we all sat together now, in silence. The agitating sound of Andrea's blade scrapping across an iron cheese grater set my teeth on edge. Smoke from the frying pans above the fire flew in the air. Eggs.

No one uttered a single word. T-Dog handed my family and I each a small plate of scrambled eggs, but my father ignored the protean in front of him. He just held the plate low in his hands, staring off into… God knows what.

My brother took a large bite of his food, but I just picked at mine with my fork. I wasn't hungry. My mother was hesitant, too, but her hunger finally gave in. Or maybe it was for the sake that she was eating for two now.

I jabbed a small piece of egg with my fork, but the puffy food just slid off. My mother hung her head, and she turned to my father, wrapping a hand around the back of his neck.

"Hey," she said, softly. She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "Where'd you go?"

My father snapped out of his haze, and leaned into my mother. "I'm here,"

My parents looked lustfully at each other, and as Carol walked by, Carl and I both looked up at her. And then, my eyes landed on Glenn.

His head turned, and he looked at the farmhouse. I did too, and I spotted Maggie standing on the porch, looking right at him, crossing her arms and shaking her head, slowly.

I instantly knew what it was about… The barn.

Glenn turned away, and we made eye contact. His eyes were begging me for an answer. _Tell them or not, _his eyes said. I shook my head, a hundred percent agreeing with Maggie. And then he looked to Dale, who nodded. Glenn did as well. His eyes drifted to the dirt and pine needles beneath our feet.

Slowly and casually, my Korean friend stood from his perch. His hands smoothed out his shirt. My eyes followed him as he walked to the center of camp. I felt my jaw locked. He looked to me one last time, and again I shook my head. _Don't do it_, I pleaded in my mind.

"A-um… Guys?" he stroked his chin nervously, and everyone else looked up at the speaker. "So… Barn's full of Walkers."

_You son of a bitch_, I wanted to scream. The sound of Andrea sharpening her blade stopped, and the eating was discontinued.

Shane growled, and stormed off to the structure in the distance. We all followed, but on the way down, I strayed behind, latching onto Glenn's arm.

"Really?" I hissed. "_Really?_"

"They needed to know-…" Glenn began, but I cut him off.

"Bull. How do you think this is gonna go down?"

"I'm not keeping secrets! Secrets get you killed."

I opened my mouth to protest, but instead someone else spoke. "He's right," Dale said, coming to Glenn's side.

"Did you know?" I asked.

"He told me. Yesterday," Dale began. "And something about your mother, but you already know what that is."

I shook my head, and shot a glare at Glenn. I lifted my hand, pointing my finger at Glenn. "You need to construct a damn filter."

Glenn hung his head.

"C'mon," Dale said, leading us back to the group. "This isn't the time."

We arrived just in time to see Shane walk to the barn doors. He stuck his eye through the gap between the doors. Suddenly, and doors shook violently, and he jumped back. An angry look flashed upon his face, and he skulked to my father.

"You cannot tell me you're alright with this," he muttered.

"No," my father said, keeping his eyes on the doors. "I'm not. But we're guests here. This isn't our land."

"My God!" Shane shouted. "These are our lives!"

"Lower your voices!" Glenn warned.

"We can't just sweep this under the rug," Andrea spat.

"It ain't right," T-Dog agreed. "Not remotely."

Shane twitched, and he began to pace around us. "We either gotta go in there, we gotta make things right, or we just gotta go," he said. "Now, Rick, we've been talkin' 'bout Fort Benning for a long time-…"

"We can't go!" my father protested.

"Why Rick? Why?"

Carol stepped forward. "Because my daughter's still out there," she said, answering for my father.

Shane chuckled, and he rubbed his face, a nasty smirk on it. "I think it's time that we all start to just… Consider the other possibility-…"

"Shane, we're not leaving Sophia behind," my father told him.

And now Daryl stepped up. "I'm close to findin' this girl. I just found her damn doll two days ago!"

"You found her doll, Daryl," Shane said like Daryl was a child. "That's what you did. You found a _doll!_"

Daryl's jaw locked, and he stepped forward, swinging his arm. "You don't know what the hell you're talkin' about!"

My father tried to calm him down, but Shane just continued. "I'm just sayin' what needs to be said here! Now you," he said, pointing at my father. "If you were bein' a good leader- the first-" I couldn't hear what the rest of what he was trying to say, because my father just cut in as they both argued at each. But then my father stopped, and Shane said the worst thing imaginable to Daryl. "Now let me tell you somethin'! If she was alive, saw you comin', all messed up with your buck knife and Geek ears 'round your neck, she would run in the other direction!"

Daryl turned red, and he charged at Shane. "You shut the hell up," he growled. My father tried to hold both men back, but Daryl swung to the other side of him.

Daryl and Shane yelled and cussed at each other, attempting to land a punch in the other's face. We all interfered. We split up, trying to hold the men back. Andrea pushed against Daryl's chest while I tried to pull his arms back. My mother shoved Shane away, but he snapped at her.

Daryl calmed down, but I didn't let go. Yes, I would love to see him rip Shane apart, but now was not the time.

"Just let me talk to Hershel. Let me figure it out-" my father started, but Shane was fed up with it.

"**WHAT ARE YOU GONNA FIGURE OUT!?**" he screamed, coming towards my father.

"Enough," my mother spat, shoving against his chest again.

"If we're gonna stay," my father growled. "If we're gonna clear this barn, I have to talk him into it. _This is his land!_"

"Hershel sees those things in there as people!" Dale finally came out and said. "Sick people- his wife, h-his stepson."

"You knew?" My father asked.

"Lucile knew, too. And yesterday, I talked to Hershel."

A venomous look came in my direction from Shane, and I knew I was as good as dead. This was the last straw. He glanced back at the barn, and then shot me another ugly look, before turning back to Dale. "You waited t'night?"

"I thought we could last one more night," Dale spat. "We did… I was waiting for this morning to say something but Glenn wanted to be the one… Lucile didn't want you to know, period."

"Man is crazy, Rick! If Hershel thinks those people are alive- **THEY AREN'T!**"

And that was enough to cause the Walkers to charge at the doors. We all stared at the giant doors in fear.

XXX

I sat on my cot, picking at the seams of a quilt. I sighed, and picked up _The Mist_ from the floor. A flash of white fell out, and I looked down, spotting the while Cherokee Rose Daryl gave me.

I smiled, and tucked the fragile flower back in between the center of the book. I felt a stinging in my shoulder, and my fingers trailed up, rubbing it. I froze when I felt a small dip, but then I remembered getting shot a few weeks ago… So much had gone on, I just forgot about it…

The tent flap unzipped, and I looked up, smiling as my father walked in and sat beside me.

"How did you find out?" he asked. "Glenn tell you?"

I shook my head, and dropped my book.

"How then?"

"I went into the hayloft… And I saw them," I simply said. "I fell off the loft, and I almost got eaten, but… Glenn was there…"

"What were you doing there in the first place?"

I bit my lip. I turned away from him. "Because of you…"

My father looked at the ground. "I'm sorry… For everything…"

"Don't be."

"It's just… You had so much planed for your life… A family, happiness, a good job-"

"I think that was all ruined when Mom got into that accident with me…"

My father nodded, and he pulled me in for a hug.

XXX

I ran my fingers through the thick mane of the beautiful brown stallion. A smile crept across my face, and I buried my forehead into his.

I heard footsteps, and I pulled my head away from the horse, watching Daryl as he approached with a saddle. He nodded towards me, and I waved before turning back to the horse.

I heard a clank. Daryl hovered over the saddle rack, clutching his abdomen. I was about to go to him, but someone else did…

"You can't," Carol stated, walking towards him.

"I'm fine," he shot back, stepping away from the saddle and walking down the center of the building.

"Hershel said you needed to heal."

"Yeah, well I don't care."

"Well I do."

I hands clenched, and I gripped the horse's mane. My knuckles turned white, and the horse cried out in pain, tugging away. I released my hands, and scratched the animal's ears, causing him to calm down.

"Rick's goin' out later to follow the trail," Carol continued.

"Yeah… I ain't gonna sit around, do nothin'-"

"No, you're going to go out there and get yourself hurt even worse," she paused. "We don't even know if we're gonna find her, Daryl. We don't."

Silence.

"I don't," she whispered.

I heard Daryl's boots scuff across the floor. "What?"

Carol hesitated. "I can't loose you, too."

Then I could have slapped her. Daryl didn't feel anything for her… Did he?

I heard him dropping a bag. I jumped in my spot as something came crashing to the floor, and I looked out of the stall, watching meekly as Carol rushed to Daryl's side. "Are you alright?"

He pushed her away, growling. "Leave me be!" he stormed past me. "Stupid bitch…"

Carol's face darkened. Tears began to form in her eyes, giving them a glassy look.

The stable doors slammed shut, but pushed them open, left, only to watch Daryl as he stomped towards the woods. I jogged to catch up with him, reaching out to grab his shoulder. I felt his skin under my hand, and he whipped around. I recoiled, stepping back when he scowled at me.

"What?" he spat.

"I," I paused to clear my throat. "What's wrong?"

He glared at me, and continued back into the woods.

"Fine," I called after him. "Don't tell me. I just wanted to-"

He gripped my arms, and his lips curled. "Wanted to what?"

I tried to pull away, but his hands were like iron claws. "It doesn't matter," I said.

"Then why the hell'd you come out here and-…" he shook his head, and released my arms. I instantly pulled back, and watched him go. "Wait!"

He froze, stopping in his tracks. "What?"

"I heard you talking to Carol, and… Why do you Sophia's okay?"

"'Cause she is," he paused, rubbing his face. "She just is. You still think she's dead?"

"Yes…" I sighed. "And I hate to admit it, but Shane's right-…"

"Dammit!" he spat, flinging his arm out. "You don't have faith in anythin'!"

"_Faith?_" I scoffed, "In anything? Name something I don't have _faith_ in that isn't Sophia?" His jaw latched, and he clenched his fists. "Exactly. And you can't-"

His lips cut me off as they pressed against mine. I felt my cheeks heat, sending my brain the message that I should pull away. My father would just go off on me again, which during now of all times, this wasn't the right one. Daryl's hands latched onto my shoulders, and I felt the heat decreasing, closing my eyes in pleasure.

"Lucy?"

My eyes shot open, and I ripped away from Daryl. My head turned to the side, and my jaw dropped as I watched Carl's face turn ghostly pale.

"Carl-" I began. "This isn't what it looks like!"

He shook his head, tears trickling down his face. "I-I'm telling Mom!" And just like that, he ran off.

"Carl! No, wait!"

My heart sunk to my stomach, and I reached out for my brother. Fire filled my soul, and I turned back to Daryl. I slapped my hands against his chest, and I shoved him away.

"You _asshole!_" I spat. "Stop getting me into trouble!"

"Lucy, I-"

"No!"

I turned on my heels, and I sprinted away from him. He was ruining my relationship with my family. Yes, I was just as guilty as he, and I'm not trying to sound like I'm entirely blaming him… But my father was pretty mad at me for quite some time. He wouldn't even look at me until today.

XXX

The sun beat down on my like fire. I couldn't find Carl anyway, so I just gave up. I sat under a tree in the camp, watching the barn. Shane was constantly down there… If he was looking to start a war between the Greene's and us, this was certainly it.

I tried to roll my sleeves up past my elbows, but the fabric was already tight around my flesh. A sigh escaped my lips, and I hunched over my legs, feeling grass tickle my bare skin when my shirt slid up.

Upon hearing boots crunching the grass before me, I looked up at Andrea as she stood there, blocking the sunlight from my eyes.

"Have you seen Dale?" she asked, crossing her arms in a relaxed way. "I've been looking for him for… The past ten minutes."

"No..." I answered. "Why?"

"I'm going out with your dad to look for Sophia. And we need guns."

"But he said no guns."

Andrea sighed, and rubbed her slightly sunburned neck. "Not on Hershel's property."

"Well anyways, no idea where he is."

"Hmm… Thanks, I guess."

She turned around, and walked away from me. I noticed that her back had a rather stiff posture… Something was bothering her.

I stood up, and I called after her. She stopped in her tracks, and looked back at me. I was about to question her, but I felt like I would be meddling in her affairs. "Never mind," I muttered.

She raised her eyebrows, and disappeared from view as she slipped into the RV.

XXX

"Checkmate," Beth smirked as she pulled my red checker from the board.

"This isn't chess," I muttered, glaring at my high stack of red checkers by Beth's elbow. I was losing, and that isn't something I take easily.

"I know…" Beth said. "It makes you mad, though, which makes you more fun to compete with."

"Compete?" I snorted. "It's checkers on a porch in an old farmhouse in the afternoon during an undead invasion. Not a football game."

The smile on Beth's face vanished at the words "undead invasion". She sighed, and gave me a sad look. I felt awful inside.

"Your turn," she muttered.

"Beth," I said, reaching across to grab her arm. "I'm sorry. I just-"

"It's your turn," she said, sternly as she straightened up.

I was shocked at how someone so innocent like her could be so… Straight forward. I picked up my red checker, and slid it diagonal from me. "I'm sorry," Beth stuttered. "It's just… My mom…"

"I know. I know Beth…"

We completed the game in silence, not even making eye contact with each other. Beth, of course, won. I felt her soft eyes on me, and I looked up. "Wanna go again?" she asked.

I shrugged, and she smiled, setting the board back up without my help.

She was about to make the first move, but she stopped when a few members of the camp relined with us, enjoying the peace and quiet.

Patricia and Carl sat beside us. I shot my brother an apologetic look, but he ignored me.

"You know what's goin' on?"

My eyes flickered over to the yard, where Andrea and T-Dog approached. Glenn stood up off the porch, walking towards us. We all just stared.

"Where is everyone?" Andrea asked.

Glenn cocked his head in worry. "You haven't seen Rick?"

"He went off with Hershel," the woman said. "We were supposed to leave a couple of hours ago."

"Yeah you were."

Now Daryl was here with Carol at his side. "What the hell?"

"He told us he was goin' out," Carol said.

Daryl's jaw twitched, and he came to the center. "Dammit, isn't anyone takin' this seriously? We got us a damn trail… Ah, here we go…"

And there was Shane, storming up to us with a bag of guns… Bag of guns… Guns… _Shit!_

"What's all this?"

"You with me, man?" Shane asked Daryl, handing him a shotgun. He nodded, excepting the gun. "Time to grow up. You already got yours…?" he asked Andrea.

"Yeah…" she said. "Where's Dale?"

"He's on his way…"

"Thought we couldn't carry," T-Dog said to Shane, raising his eyebrow.

"Yeah, well we have to," Shane muttered. My companions and I stood up from the table and joined the others. "Hey look, it was one thing standin' around pickin' daisies when we thought this place was supposed to be safe. Now we know it ain't."

Beth stopped breathing, but I stepped past them, standing in-between Glenn and Maggie. "What about you man," Shane said to my Korean friend. "You gonna protect yours?" Glenn was hesitant, but he grabbed the gun. "Can you shoot?" Shane asked Maggie.

"Can you stop?" she spat. "You do this; you hand out these guns, my dad'll make you leave tonight."

"We have to stay, Shane," Carl said, stepping in front of Patricia.

"What is this?" my mother asked, finally coming to the porch.

"We're not goin' anywhere, okay?" Shane said. "Now look, Hershel… He's just gonna have to understand. Okay, he… Well he's gonna have to," he pulled out a Glock from the bag, and thrust it into my hands without a word. I fumbled with the gun.

"I'm not doing this," I said. "I'm not murdering these people."

"_People?_" Shane scoffed. "You of all people should know that they ain't people! How many times have you had to put one down?" Never.

"But that's Hershel's family!"

"Not anymore. They're dead now. They ain't comin' back." I heard quiet sobs from Beth.

"They're more alive than you are," I growled, throwing the handgun to the side.

He rolled his eyes, and pulled out a small gun from his waistband. He got on his knees in front of my brother, and looked him dead in the eye. "We gotta find Sophia, am I right? Now I want you to take this. You take this, c'mon. You need to keep your mother safe, you do whatever it takes, you know how. Go on, take it."

"Rick said no guns," my mother said, pushing Carl behind her before he could accept the gun. "_This is not your call. This is not your decision to make."_

Go Momma Bear. Shane just glared at the ground, sending an uneasy silence through all of us.

"Oh shit!" T-Dog stuttered, finally breaking the silence.

Our eyes flew to the barn, expecting to see Walkers limping out of the old doors. But we were wrong. There were Walkers alright, and Hershel, Jimmy, and my father… They were leading the undead on neck hooks for animals.

"What is that?" Shane cussed, shoving past me. He took off in a sprint, but we all followed. He ran right through the gate by the barn, ignoring the desperate calls from Maggie as she pleaded for him to stop. "What the hell are you doin'?!" Shane screamed as we came to the men.

"Shane," my father said, trying to remain calm. "Just back off."

A shocked expression came to Hershel's face, but he kept his vice grip on the Walker's pole. "Why do your people have guns?" he questioned.

"Are you kiddin' me?!" Shane pouted, circling my father and the Walkers. "You see?! You see what they're holdin' onto?!"

"I see _who_ I'm holding on to."

"No man, you don't."

"Shane," my father growled. "Just let us do this and then we can talk."

"Whatchu gonna talk about, Rick?! These things ain't _sick!_ They're not people! They're dead!

"Ain't gotta feel nothin' for 'em, 'cause all they do, they kill! These things, _right_ _here_! They're the things that killed Amy! They killed Otis! And they're gonna kill all of us-!"

"Shane! Shut up!"

But he continued anyways… "Hey Hershel; lemme ask you somethin'. Could a livin', breathin' person. Could they walk away from this?" He pulled out the gun he had offered me, switching the safety off. He aimed it directly at the female Walker that Hershel was holding onto, and pulled the trigger. Three shots, but the Walker wasn't fazed…

"That's three rounds to the chest. Someone who's alive… Could they just take that?! Why is it still comin'?!" Again he fired, twice. "Why's it still comin'?!" And Again.

"Shane!" my father all but screamed. "_Enough!_"

"You're right man," Shane said, approaching the Walker. "That is enough."

One last shot. One last shot. Just like that. Blood sprayed from her skull, and she collapsed in the dirt.

And I guess this really struck realization into the Greene's. This was the first time they ever saw a Walker get put down. Hershel fell to his knees, taking in airless gasps. We all stood in silence, gawking at psychotic man in front of us.

"Enough riskin' our lives for a little girl who's _**gone**_! _Enough livin' next to a barn full of things that're tryin'a kill us! __**Enough!**_

__"Rick, it ain't what it was before," my father and he locked eye contact, exchanging deadly looks. "Now if you all wanna live. If you wanna _survive_, you gotta _fight_ for it! I'm talkin' about _fight_! Right here, right now!"

"Shane!" I called out after him as he charged to the barn. "_No!_"

He gripped a stray pickaxe, weighing it in his hands. "Hershel!" my father screamed, trying to get him to take the Walker on the pole. "Take it!"

The elder was still stuck in his daze, unable to move. "Hershel! Listen to me man, please! Take it now! _**Hershel!**_ Take it!"

Shane drove the pickaxe straight at the padlock on the barn door. The blade slashed through, over and over. The Walkers inside came to the noise. I listened as they swarmed to the doors, slamming against it. Shane dug the pickaxe blade under the chain. Using all the force his had, he pried the lock off of the door, letting it fall to the dirt. He threw the pickaxe off to the side, turning back to remove the wooden plank securing the doors.

He pounded his fists against the wood, shouting for the Walkers. He opened the door a few inches, and stood back, his gun in sights with the door.

"Get behind me," my mother ordered, pushing Carl and I to her back. I pushed ducked away, watching with the Greene's as the first Walker stumbled out of the barn.

Andrea, T-Dog, and Daryl ran up with their guns, going Shane. And as fast as the first Walker came out, the first gunshot went off.

Beth clung onto my side. She wouldn't look away from the massacre. But you couldn't simply look away. It was like a car crash; you know you should look away, but it isn't something you see everyday… It's something that drawls you it like a magnet.

Glenn pushed past us, joining the others. Shane turned his gun towards my father. My breath hitched in my throat. He pulled the trigger, but it was the Walker he was clinging onto that fell.

A female Walker in a now grey dress limped out. A sob escaped from Beth, and as it went down, so did her spirit. I knew instantly that that Walker had been her mother. A following suit was her stepbrother. Jimmy shot a sad look back a Beth, who let go of me and went to him instead.

So the shooting continued, but… We just seemed so use to it. At least I did.

The last Walker fell to the dirt, and upon hearing the grass crunch behind me, I turned, coming into eye contact with none other than Dale.

I didn't even have to say anything to him in order to get the message.

I turned back, joining the others in the depressing silence. I approached the barn, though I stopped beside my father. But coming from the barn doors, beneath the cracks, I heard a heavy breathing. Like a congested person trying to take deep breaths.

But they sounded as if the owner of the breathing also ran ten miles. Exhausted and sick.

The barn doors cracked open just a tiny bit more, and the last remaining Walker came into light.

Not a Walker… A little child… A girl with old sneakers, pink socks, cargo pants, a purple tee-shirt with a printed rainbow on it, and sandy blonde hair…

And we all knew this child.

A gruesome tattered chunk of muscles exposed into the air. Dried blood caked around it. Her shirt hung off of her shoulder, revealing rotten flesh.

She _was _a Walker.

And as she looked up at us, eyeing her meals, her eyes were a blind grey, like Mrs. Greene's dress. Her eyes sunk into her skull, and her lips were blue as if she had hypothermia. Multiple growls pushed through her rotting lips.

It was as if even Satan himself felt pity. And all hell froze over.

Sobs came from Carol, and she ran forward. "Sophia!" she cried out. Daryl grabbed her, pulling the frazzled mother down to the ground.

Sophia snarled, picking up her feet. She limped towards us, eyeing each and every one of us. A few times she stumbled over her dead companions, but that didn't stop her.

Another growl, and another sob from Carol was enough to break anyone's heart… Even mine… One of the few people who had no faith of finding her.

We waited for Shane to just walk up to her and shoot her… But he didn't. He _couldn't_.

No, only a few feet from us then did my father walk in front of me, towards the undead child. He pulled his Revolver from his waistband.

The same Revolver he used to put down countless Walkers, and even to protect Sophia from stray Walkers as they searched for her.

My father was hesitant to pull the trigger. Sophia looked like she was ready to pounce. An inhumane cry came from her. He pointed the gun at her forehead, and time just seemed to stop.

Sophia slowly raised her arm to grab at my father, but he was quicker.

He pulled the trigger, and Sophia… The young girl most of us risked our lives for fell into the dirt, black blood spraying everywhere.


	19. Chapter 19

**AN: Well…. Dafuq, guys? I've taken the fact that you guys don't like long chapters, and I don't think anyone picked up on the kiss Daryl and Lucy had… I bet you silly geese just skimmed the chapter… Okay, no problem. I can go back to shorter chapters. **

**Well, a very, very special thing will be happening as this is Nebraska and the next chapter is Trigger Finger * Wink Wink *.**

**I have so many ideas that I can't wait to see unfold.**

**A poll will be set up in the next few chapters. What it's about will be explained later. **

**Sorry about the three-month wait!**

_**Chapter 19**_

Carol's sobs cascaded through us. My father lowered his gun from the busted head of the child. I was nonchalant however. I had seen this coming- maybe not exactly this, but I knew we wouldn't find her. What were the odds? A defenseless, tired, scared, hungry little girl out in the woods where a herd of Walkers had just passed.

I sort of… Blame my father in some ways. He had told us her made sure Sophia was to head back when he went to distract the Walkers chasing her. But he could've told her to stay, and he'd come back for her.

And she'd be safe.

"C'mon," Daryl said to only Carol, though we could all hear it fine. "Time to go-"

"_No!_" she cried. She shoved away from Daryl, storming back to camp on her own, leaving him.

But silence didn't fall. Of the corpses, Beth's mother and brother lay in a mangled heap. I felt guilt inside of me, for what I said earlier about it being just… Plan and simple; undead, no hope.

Beth sobbed against Jimmy's chest. I glanced back at my friend. She shook her head quickly to herself, like she was in denial, and stepped away from her boyfriend. The air beside my father and I shifted as she shoved past the rest of the group and passed us.

"Wait-" my father said to her, reaching for her arm. Beth pulled her arms to her chest in a defensive position, but continued on.

She pulled a male Walker off of a corpse. She grabbed the other Walker's shoulder- her mother's shoulder- and turned her over. "Mom," she sobbed on her knees. A loud snarl came from one of the corpses and a scream from Beth, as hands reached for her, we charged forward.

We tried our best to pull her away from her still living Walker mother. I feared Beth had been scratched turned the chaos. I grabbed the Walker's ankles as Glenn already occupied the wrists. The two of us struggled to pull back the angry, taunted Walker. The flesh was warm and mushy. I was tempted to just let go, but my friend was in peril.

The men finally managed to pull Beth away. Hershel ran to his daughter, holding her close as she sobbed and still screamed. But that didn't stop Annette. T-Dog hopped over, repeatedly kicking the mother's head. Cracklings of the skull were audible, yet the mother was persistent.

Andrea rushed past us. T-Dog gave her a look, and stepped away from the mother. "Look out!" Andrea called as she ran back to us. Once I saw she had the pickaxe used to open the barn, I let go of Annette and ducked. The sounds of the blade entering the skull were none too pleasant. As Andrea removed the blade, a sick popping noise came from it, followed by a thud as the mother fell to the ground.

Beth nearly fell over, and she would have if not for Hershel. Jimmy came to his side, placing a hand on her shoulder and the Greene farm residents joined in a heap. "Lucy." Maggie said, "Come with us. I want you to be there for Beth.

"Alright-"

XXX

"We've been out. We've been combin' these woods looking for her and she was in there all along?" Shane snapped at Hershel as he and my father trekked behind us. "_You knew_."

"Leave us alone." Maggie spat.

"Shane, just stop-" my father started, placing his hand on his shoulder. Shane swatted it away like he did my mother. "Get your hands off me."

Hershel shook his head, defending himself. "I-"

"You knew," Shane said again, "And you kept it from us."

"I didn't know."

"That's bullshit I think you all knew!"

Maggie turned towards Shane. "We didn't know."

"Why was she there?"

"Otis," Hershel began, "put those people in the barn. Maybe he found her, but her in there before he was killed."

"You expect me to believe that? What- do I look like an idiot to you?"

"Shane. Stop it." I snapped. "We both know you didn't care about her! You thought she was dead, right? Right? Isn't that what you said today? That she was dead? Exactly! Stop trying to pick a fight with everybody."

"Hey, hey," my father said, separated Shane and I from each other; the goods verses the bads, I suppose you could say. "Everybody just calm down-"

"_Get him off my land!_" Hershel barked.

"Hey man, let me tell you something," Shane said, now as he saw his turn to defend himself. He started towards Hershel, but Maggie interfered, backhanding Shane. "**Don't touch him**." she shouted. Glenn pushed past my father and him, pushing Shane away as he looked ready to attack. "Haven't you done enough?"

Maggie slowly turned from him, walking across the porch and into the house with Beth, Patricia, and I. Hershel hesitated. "I mean it; off my land."

He joined us inside. Patricia and I took Beth to the living room, where she slumped on the couch. Maggie sat down with her. The door opened, and Glenn emerged. "Lucy, Lori's looking for you."

"Okay…" I departed from my older friend, and slid past Glenn as I exited the farmhouse, seeking my mother. I found her still at the barn with a few others and Carl. I walked around Shane and my father who were arguing with each other, and took off into a sprint to the rest of my family.

My mother turned around as she heard the grass crunch, and she beckoned me towards her. I sat down next to them. I watched Andrea. She sat before Sophia, clutching a quilt in her hands before covering the child. A cold, uncomfortable breeze hung in the air, and the clouds were grey. It looked ready to rain. My mother wrapped her arm around my shoulders, startling me. She did the same to Carl, who leaned into him.

"Sweetheart, how did you find out about the Walkers in the barn?" she asked me, just loud enough that only I could hear.

"After Dad… found out about Daryl and I, I had the typical teenage girl meltdown and ran to the barn. I was sitting in the hayloft. It smelled really bad, like rotting flesh, and I looked over the rafters. I saw them."

I didn't tell her about almost dying. I knew she wouldn't take it as well as my father did. "Your brother told me he saw you and Daryl today."

I sighed. "It isn't like that. Nothing happened. We were talking about Sophia. I don't know what Carl thought he saw."

"He said you were kissing. Holding each other."

"We were talking. That's it."

"Yeah," my mother said. "Okay." She once again knew I was lying. I was almost certain a Walker would never get the chance to kill me; my parents would before one got the chance.

"Lucy… This has to stop. You're still grounded. With your birthday being in a few days, I was going to talk to your father about ungrounding you. But I don't know now. How do we know you won't do this again?"

"It doesn't matter whether I'm grounded or not." I said, "What am I supposed to do during my day? Still chores."

"You've gotten into so much trouble since this started. I don't want you to die, I love you, but it seems like you will soon if you don't keep it together. We're just looking after you." she paused. "That means no sneaking off in the middle of the night to _murder_ someone."

I remained silent. So did my mother. Shane told her. There was no other possibility unless Dale saw me. But I knew he hated Shane. My mother's arms fell from our backs.

The clouds cleared up, but the breeze didn't.

"I thought we'd find her…" Carl said.

"We all did," my mother told him. _Not all of us._

"No," my brother said back. "That _I'd_ be the one. Like; maybe she was hiding somewhere. A cave or in a tree. She'd be safe… I'd find her and bring her back…" there was a pause as Shane came up from behind us. "He did the right thing. Shooting her like that. I would have done it too."

I was doubting my brother's confidence. I didn't think he would ever do it. Ever.

My mother was shocked, and looking pained. "Dale?" she asked as he circled the dead bodies like a vulture.

He looked up from the dead bodies. "Yeah?"

"Can you take Carl to the house?" she asked. "You need to rest," she told him.

"Okay."

XXX

"Just a few more trips?" my father asked, approaching Andrea and T-Dog as they busily heaved the dead corpses into the bed of the blue pickup.

"We got lucky," Andrea panted. "It's like burning anymore we could've been overrun." T-Dog grunted, stepping back from the truck,

"Good thing Shane did what he did," he said, brushing off his shirt. "_When _he did."

My mother crossed her arms. I was disgusted by what T-Dog said, shaking my head displaying so. As was Dale. "You can't tell me this was right?" he said.

"It wasn't," my father told him. "It will cost us with Hershel."

"Shane's already in a bad spot with him," I said. "Is that how you two want to be? Hated by someone who's done nothing but goodness to us?"

"He's grieving." Andrea concurred. "He'll come around. See; we had no choice. I shot too. This wasn't all Shane."

"Walker's in my backyard?" T-Dog shook his head. "We made it safer."

Dale shook his head. "I'm not saying we shouldn't have taken care of the problem, but creating a panic-!"

"There's no point arguing about it. It's done," my mother said, ending the argument. "There's nothing we can do about it."

The other's probably hated to admit it, but she was right. The truck pulled out. My father and Dale left. Shouting came from the porch of the farmhouse. My mother headed towards it. I followed after her as she jogged across the lawn, up onto the porch, and into the house.

My mother and I bounded up the hallway staircase. Only one door was open. My mother peeked inside. I slipped past her. Beth was lying on top of the quilted bed, frozen.

"What's wrong with her?" Maggie asked my mother.

"She might be in shock- Where's Hershel?"

"We can't find him anywhere," Glenn said from the corner of the room.

XXX

My father and Shane joined us in Hershel's bedroom. The men and my mother began sorting through his drawers and the boxes of women's possessions on his bed. "Your stepmother's things?" my father asked Maggie as he pulled what appeared to be a wedding gown from one of the boxes.

"He was so sure she'd recover. Then he'd just pick up where they left off," Maggie replied.

Shane picked a rectangular prism from the dresser, eyeing it. "Looks like he found an old friend…" he held it up, revealing it to be a flask. He tossed it to my father.

"That belonged to my grandfather." Maggie said as she took it from my father's hands. "Gave it to Dad when he died."

"I didn't take Hershel for a drinker," he said back.

"No, he gave it up on the day I was born. He didn't even allow liquor in the house," Maggie said back, trailing the room. There was a pause before my father said something back,

"What's the bar in town?"

"Hatlends." **(AN: Maggie's accent is too strong and I couldn't hear what she said. The wikia didn't have anything either.)**

"Then that's where I'll find him."

"Yeah," Glenn said. "I've seen the place. I'll take you."

"Alright, I'll get the truck."

"No," Maggie said to Glenn.

"It's an easy run."

"It's never easy-"

"Hey Maggie," my father interrupted. "We'll bring him back," he said, indicating also Glenn.

My father started to walk out of the room. "Dad, wait," I called, rushing out to him. He stopped. "Can I come with?"

"No," he said, plain and simple.

"Why?"

"What happened the last time you came with us to fetch someone?"

I was kidnapped, almost raped, and shot. "But I had no way of defending myself then!"

"No."

"_Please!"_

"No."

"What happened to Glenn when we went to save Merle, hmm? He got kidnapped too!"

"Lucy, Glenn's a grown man."

"Hardly. Please! I want to help!"

"No."

"I'm sick of not doing anything! I'm sick of washing clothing! I'm sick of cooking! I'm sick of cleaning up after you people! Beth's my friend! I want to help. It's the least I can do."

My father didn't say anything. He glanced back at my mother inside of the room. He sighed, rubbed the bridge of his nose, and looked up at the hallway ceiling light. "Okay. Fine. But you have to listen to me. Stay close."

"Thanks Dad," I said as I smiled.

**AN: HISTORY HAS REPEATED ITSELF! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, though I got a little bored writing it. I'm just too excited about all my ideas. I didn't get to finish Nebraska because I felt this chapter would run on too much. Next chapter will finish Nebraska, don't worry. **


	20. Chapter 20

**AN: Okay, so I got a review from Goldenfightergirl who said that I was teasing you guys about the romance. I cleared it up for her, but for the rest of you wonderers, it's over for Daryl romance. That kiss in the woods where Carl witnessed was pretty much the aftermath I was talking about when Lucy flipped on Daryl. Daryl has been Friend zoned. Forever. As for the romance, some of you have been told what will happen, only because of what you told me in the poll. The romance won. Think about what I told you select few who told me the certain character. And tell no one. **

**Thank you all for the many reviews!**

**Seven more chapters (about) until this story goes on hiatus, but that depends on when I update. I have to wait until Season Three is on Netflix. I don't spend like blowing money on iTunes for it, or getting on those stupid Third Party websites, unless any of you know of a website that's actually good. **

_**And I'd like to take this moment to thank ReadWriteLove715, who helped me with many future plans. You rock, and your story is awesome! Go read it everybody!**_

**From now on, I'm going to start listing facts about Lucile, one per chapter. **

_**Today's fact: **_**Lucile's middle name is Beatrice.**

_**The more you know..**_

**Oh, and tell me if you guys would be interested in a Skyrim fanfiction.**

_**Chapter 20**_

My father ran his long fingers down the barrel of his revolver. He flipped the gun over, and flicked the chamber open as he administrated six bullets. The chamber closed with a snap, and he tucked the gun behind him. The door to the farmhouse opened. Glenn climbed down the steps of the porch with his shotgun used from earlier, and Maggie trailing behind, like a lost dog.

The two embraced in a _very _passionate grip, closing the gap between them as their lips pressed to each other. My father seemed disturbed, turning to a Browning Hi-Power. The clip fell into his hand. He checked the current capacity, pushed it back in, and handed it to me. "Hopefully, you won't need to use it." He said, "but take another clip just incase." I tucked the extra clip inside of my pocket,

"What if two aren't enough?"

"You have two thirteen-round clips. That's more than enough." He took my gun. I watched him removed a single bullet from the clip and set the weapon down. "Nine millimeter semi-automatic. It was Merle's… We haven't used it since Atlanta. Consider it an early birthday present," he pushed the bullet back in. I regained my gun. "And probably the only besides driving…" he muttered.

"Thanks, Dad," I smiled, eyeing the beautiful gun. "I'll take good care of it-"

"I know you will. But if I see you parading around camp with it, you can forget you ever had it."

I sighed in exasperation, "I know."

"You remember how to load it and such?"

"Yes."

He nodded, looking like he was about to say something else. He pulled a leather pouch from his pocket. I accepted it once he offered. "A knife?"

"Conserve ammo."

The leather felt so familiar. Most leather did, but this leather… I once again possessed the knife that I failed to use back in Atlanta. _Long time to see, buddy ol' pal…_

The grass crunched underneath Glenn's sneakers. He slumped his shoulders as he walked towards us. "Ready?" my father asked. "Yeah…" Glenn looked disturbed, as if someone threatened him in a life or death situation. Without another word, he climbed into the passenger's seat. My father motioned for me to sit up front with Glenn. I pushed the armrest up, sitting sandwiched in between the two of them. Slamming the door shut with a jolt, my father started the engine. My mother walked from the farmhouse towards us. My father lowered his window.

My mother peaked her head inside the gap, "You make sure you listen to your dad. I don't want you to come back in pieces, or not at all-"

"She's in good hands," my father interrupted. "Nothing's gonna happen."

"I know… Can't I be a worried mother?" My father smiled, and so did I. My mother's eyes landed on Merle's gun- my gun. She stiffened. Her jaw locked. "Be careful with that gun. Please."

"I will."

My mother relaxed, "I love you. I'm so proud of you."

"I know, Mom."

XXX

The trees swayed past us as the 1979 Jeep Cherokee sped down the abandoned road. "That isn't safe." I muttered to Glenn as he held his shotgun, positioning the barrel towards his face as the butt sat in between his thighs,

"Safety's on…" he said, looking down the gun.

My father glanced past me to Glenn. He refocused on the road for a second before glancing back over. That uneasy look of fear or disturbed thoughts still lingered on our Korean companion's face. "Maggie said she loves me." I looked at him, wondering why that would cause such a feeling of terror. That was a good thing, right? Love was good. Love meant happiness, not distress. An uneasy smile appeared on his face as he looked to my father. "She doesn't mean it," he told us in denial. "I mean, she can but why-… She's upset- Confused… She's probably feeling-"

"She's smart enough to know what she's feelin'." My father said. Glenn shook his head,

"No… No." My father and I had begun to laugh by now. "She… She wants to be in love. So she needs something to… To…. Like-"

"Glenn," my father interrupted, "it's pretty obvious to everyone- Maggie loves you, and not because of Last Man Standing, so what's the problem?"

"I didn't say it back…"

"Huh…"

"Why not?" I asked. "After all you wanted to have sex with her so much-"

"That's a little too much there." My father said to me.

"It's true."

"I've never had a woman say they loved me before," Glenn said to us. "You know, except… My mom, of course, and my sisters… With Maggie it's different- we _barely_ know each other. What does she really know about me? _Nothing_." Glenn trailed off. "We're practically strangers. I don't know what to do with it. I just stood there like a jerk…"

"Hey, hey," my father said, "this is a good thing. Something we don't get enough of these days. _Enjoy_ it. When we get back, return the favor. It's not like this is going anywhere."

Glenn didn't reply. He just nodded, staring out the window. My father slowed the Jeep down as the town approached. After passing the faded intersection, he shut off the vehicle, shoving the keys into his pockets. "Rick- I know about Lori. So does she." Glenn said, pointing towards me. "That Lori's pregnant… I got her those pills…"

"I figured." My father said, not hiding the fact that he was pissed off. He opened the door, climbing out of the car. I followed. The vehicle shook as we slammed the doors shut. Upon seeing my father and Glenn positioning their guns in a defensive position, I did the same.

"I'm sorry I kept it from you," Glenn said.

"Don't be. You did what you thought was right…" he replied. "…Just so happens it wasn't."

We walked down the sidewalk in silence until the Patton's Bar sign was in sight. My father shoved the double doors open, aiming his gun for Walkers. But alas, the only living creature inside was an elderly man hunched over a bottle of whiskey, perching up on a barstool. The door shut behind us, and my father relaxed his gun.

"Hershel?" my father called out to him. There was a pause,

"Who's with you?"

"Glenn and Lucy."

"Maggie send Glenn?"

"He volunteered." My father said. "He's good like that." The two men walked towards Hershel. Glenn froze halfway. I slowly approached him, coming to his side.

"How many've you had?" Hershel sighed, "Not enough."

"Why don't we finish this up at home…? Beth collapsed. In some sort of… State. Must be in shock. I think you are _too_."

"Maggie's with her?"

"Yeah, but _Beth needs_ you."

"What could I do?" Hershel said. "She needs her mother. Or to mourn. Just like she should have done weeks ago, but I robbed her of that. I see it now…"

"You thought there was a cure. I can't blame you for holding yourself out for hope."

"Hope? Hershel snickered. "When I first saw you runnin' across my fields with your boy in your arms, I had little hope he'd survive."

"But he did." My father replied.

"He did… Even though we lost Otis, your man Shane made it back. And we saved your boy. That was the miracle that proved to me miracles _do_ exist. Only it was a sham."

I felt myself want to reach out to Hershel. What he had said about Shane, an Carl… And Otis. He and his family had lost so much in so little time. His wife- his stepson- Otis- neighbors- and maybe soon Beth. We barely lost anything. Anyone. We lost countless to Walker's attacking the quarry. We lost Amy, Jim, Sophia and Jacqui. But they weren't family to us like Hershel's. They were great people, but Hershel lost his _legitimate _relatives. My family. We have each other. I didn't see it as a very honorable game from God for the Greene's.

"I was a fool Rick," Hershel said, "and you people saw it. My daughters deserve better than that." Taking another swing of whiskey, Hershel set the glass down, running his hand along his face. He uncorked the whiskey bottle, pouring more alcohol into his glass.

Glenn and I backed up towards the doors. Giving Hershel one long, hard look, my father came to us. "So what do we do? Just… Wait for him to pass out?" Glenn asked.

"Just go!" Hershel barked, having overheard him. "Just go..."

"I promised Maggie I'd bring you home safe."

"Like you promised that little girl?"

"That's not fair!" I snapped. "Sophia was dead from the moment she left! You're capable of-"

My father shot his arm out, pushing back. "I'll handle this," he whispered. He turned towards Hershel,

"So what's your plan? Finish that bottle?" he told him, stalking up to him. "_Drink your way death_? Leave your girls alone?"

Hershel slammed the bottle on the table, a glare running across his face as he stood from the bar, knocking the stool over. He and my father met halfway. "Stop telling me how to take care of my family. _My farm!_ You people are like a _plague!_ I do the Christian thing, give you shelter! And you _destroyed _it all!"

"The world was already in bad shape when we met."

"And you take no responsibility! You're supposed to be their _leader!_"

"I'm here _now!_" my father spat. "Aren't I?!"

Hershel was hesitant to reply. I was afraid this was going to end in heavy physical brawling. "Yes…" he said. "Yes… Yes you _are_ here." He skulked back to the bar, sitting in a new, closest barstool, sliding his whiskey over.

"C'mon," my father said to Hershel, grabbing the bottle as his tone lowered. Glenn and I slowly made our way to him. "Your girls need you. More than ever."

"I didn't want to believe you!" Hershel said. "You told me there was no cure. That these people were dead. Not sick. I tried to choose not to believe that! But when Shane shot Louise, and she just kept coming. That's when I knew what an ass I've been."

"No, you're not," I said to Hershel. "That isn't true-"

"Yes it is! Annette was gone long ago. And she was just a corpse. That's when I knew there was no hope. And when that- that little girl… When that little girl came out of the barn. I saw the look on your faces. I knew you knew it too. All of you people. Right? And Rick… There is no hope. And you know it now. Don't you?"

"There is no hope for any of us."

"God dammit, I'm done Hershel. I'm not doing this anymore. No more cleaning up after you. You know what the truth is?" my father sneered. I grabbed onto his shoulder, trying to calm him down. "_Nothing_ has changed. Death? It's still death. It's always been there. From a heart attack, or maybe cancer, or a Walker. What's the difference? You didn't think it was hopeless before, did you? And now there are people back home that need us to give them a reason to hope. Even if we don't believe it ourselves. This isn't about what we believe. Not anymore, Hershel. It's about them."

The older man finished the alcohol in his glass. I felt like he hadn't listened to a word my father said until he flipped the glass upside down and slammed it on the bar. My father patted his back. The door opened with an obnoxious screech. "Glenn, what are you-?"

"Son of a bitch," the intruder said. He looked back at his partner. "They're alive."

**AN: Sorry for a boring chapter, but I've been really busy and never got to finish Nebraska. I'll finish it next chapter, but that means a short chapter. Sorry!**

**EDIT! When I first posted this chapter, for some reason it was all crammed into one mega paragraph, so I had to delete it and fix. Sorry!**


	21. Chapter 21

**AN: I'm still having problems with the paragraphs. AMC's website did not have the episodes, but someone told me of another site. Thank you much! Thank you all for the reviews.**

**The first time Dave said about leaving Philadelphia, I was all "F*** yeah! Pennsylvania!" because I'm not sure if you guys know but I live in PA. **

_**Chapter 21**_

"I'm Dave," the smaller man said as he perched himself at one of the small bar tables. "This scrawny looking dude is Tony." He pointed to the large, disgusting man sitting beside Hershel. Dave's sarcasm was refreshing. Still, I had bad vibes from them. Have they been spying on us? Do they know where the farm is?

My father poured liquor into six glasses, identical to the crystal glass Hershel was drowning his sorrows in. "Eat me, Dave," Tony sneered.

"Hey, maybe someday I will," he snagged one of the glasses. My father handed us all each a glass. I just stared at the amber liquid. _I'm not drinking this. Look at what happened at the CDC. And I promised my mother no more_. "We just got out of Philly. What a mess that was…"

"Pennsylvania?" I asked. "That bad there too?"

Dave nodded. A smile crept on the corners of Glenn's mouth. "I'm Glenn," he said. "It's nice to meet new people."

"Rick Grimes," my father said. I eyed him suspiciously. How could he so easily trust these people?

"Lucy," I told them, setting my glass on the bar. I realized that the only reason my father gave me alcohol was to prevent them from knowing I was only fifteen. I suppose he didn't trust them, then.

"What about you?" Dave asked Hershel. "You gonna drink?"

"No," he replied. "I just quit."

"A unique sense of timing, my friend."

"His name's Hershel," my father told him. "We lost people today. A lot of them."

Dave hesitated to reply. "I'm truly sorry to hear that," he sighed. "To better days and new friends. To our dead; may they be in a better place." I took I small, quick sip of the alcohol, disregarding what I told myself. It burned my throat, and I struggled to not make a scene. I swallowed it, turning my head away to cringe.

"You okay, there?" Dave asked. I nodded, turning to face him. I blinked away the tiny tears forming in the inner corners of my eyes.

"Yeah," I said, lowering my hand. "It's just been a while since I've had alcohol." I wasn't lying. It's only been a month since a buzzed at the CDC… And _it _happened.

"You don't look that old to be drinking…" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

"It runs in the family. We age like porcelains," I lied. Dave shrugged, taking a long sip from his glass. I hoped I had convinced him, though any idiot could easily tell I was Rick Grimes's daughter. I was a splitting image of both my parents.

Dave reached across the table to set down his glass. My father's eyes landed on a black handgun nestled into Dave's back pocket. The two of their eyes met. He removed the gun, holding it in his dirty hands. "Not bad, huh?" He ran his fingers down the finish. "I got it off a cop."

"I'm a cop," my father said. I inched towards him, fearing this man would shoot him.

"This one was already dead," Dave said with a _reassuring _smile. Tony glanced at my father, then at Glenn, stopping at me.

"You fellows are a long way from Philadelphia," my father said.

"It feels like we're a long way from anywhere!" Dave said.

"What drove you out?"

"Well I can tell you it wasn't the weather… Must of dropped thirty pounds in sweat alone down here."

"Where were you before?"

"First it was D.C.," he said. "Heard there was some kind of refugee camp. But… the roads have been so jammed we never came close. Stayed off of highways… Kept going. Every group we came across had a new rumor of a way to get out of this thing."

Dave and Tony went on about island rumors. The coastguard… Different places with trains, which were only pipe dreams. There was Montgomery to Kansas… to Nebraska…

"Nebraska?" Glenn asked.

"Big population, lots of guns," Tony said.

"Makes sense…"

"Ever been to Nebraska, kid?" Dave asked him. "Reason they call them fly over states." My father snickered, drowning the rest if the alcohol in his glass. I casually slid my full glass to him from behind my back to him. He looked at it, holding it in his hands.

"You two family?" Dave asked. "No other reason to be swapping germs…"

"Siblings," my father told him. I nodded through the lie.

"Thank God you two have each other," Dave said. "Where you guys headed?"

"Fort Benning," my father replied. "Eventually."

"Hate to piss in your corn flakes, officer but… We ran across a guard that was stationed at Benning. Said it's gone."

"What?" I stuttered.

"Fort Benning is gone?" Glenn asked. "Are you for real?"

"Sadly, I am…" the man said. "But the truth is… There is no way out of this… Just keep going from one pipe dream to the next, praying these mindless freaks don't grab a hold of you while you sleep."

"Where do you guys sleep?" Tony asked.

"Yeah!" Dave exclaimed. "Doesn't look like you're hanging your hats around here. Living somewhere else?"

"Not really," my father said slowly.

"Those your cars out front?"

"Yeah," Glenn said. "Why?"

"Those look kinda empty…" Dave said. "Clean. Where's all your gear?"

"We're with a larger group," Hershel finally said. "Out scouting, thought we could use a drink."

"A drink?" Dave asked. "Hershel, I thought you quit? Anyways, we're thinking of settling up around here. Is it safe?"

"It can be," Glenn said. We all looked at him. "Killed a couple Walkers around here."

"Walkers?" he asked. "That what you call them?"

"Yeah…"

"That's good… I like that… So what? You guys set up on the outskirts of something? That new development? Trailer park or something?" Tony got up, walking past us. He smelled of sweat and alcohol. "Farm?"

My father tensed. "Old Mc Donald had a farm…" Dave sang. I saw my father's hand slide down to his side where his Revolver was. "You on a farm?"

I scrunched my nose in disgust as the fat ass Tony urinated in the corner, his piss splashing on the ground. My father pulled me closer to him. "Safe? You gotta be… I mean you have food? Water? So listen, Glenn-"

"We've said enough," my father interrupted.

"This farm sounds pretty sweet. Don't it, Tony?"

"Yeah… Real sweet," Tony agreed. He stood beside me.

"Listen, things got bad at out camp," Dave said. "I don't see why you can't make room for a few more. We can pull our resources."

"Look, I'm sorry but that's not an option," my father said. The two men remained silent.

"Doesn't sound like it'd be a problem," Dave said.

"I'm sorry, we can't," Hershel said.

"We can't take in anymore."

Dave laughed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "You people are something else. I thought we were friends? We got people we have to look after, too."

"We don't know anything about you."

"That's true…" Dave sighed. "You don't know anything about us. You don't know what we've had to go through out there… Things we've had to do… I bet you've had to do some of those same things yourself, am I right? Ain't nobody's hands clean in what's left of this world. We're all the same. So let's take a nice friendly hayride to this farm, and we'll get to know each other."

"That's not gonna happen," my father said.

"This is bull shit…" Tony grumbled.

"Calm down," my father hissed.

"Don't tell me to calm down!" Tony spat. "Don't _ever_ tell me to calm down! I'll shoot you damn assholes in the head!" My father stood up, like he was ready to punch him.

"Let's all just calm down!" Dave said, coming between them. "Easy. Nobody's killing anybody. Nobody's shooting anybody, right Rick?" Dave asked as he climbed over the bar.

Tony's hand flew to his back pocket, to a handgun. Dave removed his, placing it on the counter. "Just friends having a drink, that's all…" My father gripped his revolver. "You gotta understand why we can't stay out there…"

"Yeah… I do," my father said. "But the farm is too crowded as it is." Tony had stepped too close to me; I could feel his breath on the back of my neck, even through the turtleneck.

"What should we do then?" Dave asked.

"I don't know…" my father said. "I hear _Nebraska's _nice."

Dave laughed. "Nebraska?" he asked. "This guy…"

Suddenly, Dave lunged for his gun. My father ripped out his gun, shooting him clear between the eyes. Just as quickly Tony latched onto my arm, using me as a shield. He pulled the handgun out, pressing it to my temple. "Let go of me you prick!" I snarled.

My father turned to face us, pulling the trigger without hesitation. The bullet flew past the top of my head, right into Tony's skull. I stumbled forward as he toppled over. My father caught me before I hit the ground. "You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah," I pulled out of his arms. "Thanks."

"I promised your mom I wouldn't let anything happen to you," he told me.

"Do you think there's more of them out here?" Glenn asked. My father looked at the large blood splatter on the wall that came from Dave's brain. His eyes darted to Tony. I couldn't help but not to look at the puddle of blood at Tony's head. _He was going to kill you._

In this world, it was kill or be killed.

**AN: I hope that was okay! If you guys thought these past two chapters were boring, I swear to God I'll make it up in the next chapter! I posted a new story! It's Walking Dead, TellTale, which takes place after Season One! Please, guy, you'd be doing me a great favor by reading/reviewing/favoriting/and following!  
**


	22. Chapter 22

**AN: Did you guys check out Here is Gone? Did you like it? **

**Okay, so I realized that a lot of you are sad because no more Daryl love, but please, please, PLEASE just bare with me! I think you guys will like the new plan, but please, please, remember that time is passing from Season Three to Four, and by the looks of Rick's grey hairs, that time has passed, and Lucy will probably be seventeen by then, which is close to eighteen… * wink wink * **

**I know I didn't have the funeral two chapters ago, but that was because I wanted to wait to have it. **

**I saw the Season Four Comic-Con trailer, and it was awesome! So mysterious… And Daryl looks so hot!**

**HEY! LISTEN! ( I bet you read that in a Navi voice) I am accepting an unpaid partnership for all my stories! More information on my profile!**

**I forgot to do the trivia for last chapter, so you guys get two today- **

_**Today's Trivia's**_**: 1. The Doctors thought Lucy was going to be a boy when she was born. **

**2. Lucy used to get into a lot of fights with boys in middle school. Physical, which resulted in two In School Suspensions, getting her booted out of the Honor Society, but by the end of Fresh Man year, she was allowed back in, but put on a parole. **

_**Chapter 22**_

Glenn and Hershel slowly came to our sides, gazing down at Tony's dead, mangled body. I didn't feel the least bit of sympathy for him. "Holy shit…" Glenn whispered, gripping his black hair.

"Should've just left them if they were still alive," I said to my father. "Make them bleed to death."

"You're alright," he told me. "That's what matters. What about you, Glenn?"

He hesitated. "Yeah."

"Hershel?" When the old man didn't reply, my father looked to Glenn. Our Korean friend had an unsure look plastered across his entire face. Once he returned his gaze back to Hershel, he hesitantly nodded. My father did as well. "Let's head back," Hershel said.

My father bent down over Tony, snagging the shotgun at his side. He stuck his hands inside of the fat man's pockets, pulling out two shotgun shells. He tucked the shells inside of his shirt pocket. I stayed glued to his side. We walked over to the door, but Glenn slid behind the bar, staring down at Dave's corpse. I saw that he grabbed his handgun. The four of us stood a mere three yards away from the door, when out of the blue a set of headlights shined through the curtained windows as the vehicle sped down the road.

"Go!" my father whispered. "_Go!_" He pushed his hand against my back, and we slid up against the wall by the windows. Not the safest place to be, but the bar was pretty stripped clean of over half its furniture, and the little bit left provided zero places to hide, besides the bar, but it was too far away for us to be able to make it in time.

I pulled my gun out as the vehicles came to a stop. My heart pounded in my brain, it felt like. We all tried our hardest to become as small as God would allow us, hiding in the shadows.

"_Dave?_" A voice asked. "_Tony?_"

"_Maybe they left_…"

"_No, I'm telling you," _a third man said_. "I heard shots._"

"_Probably ran into some of those morons…"_

The group walked past the bar. One of the men looked through the glass windows on the door, but the frosted glass prevented him from seeing in. I just realized how hot my skin was, and how much sweat soaked my shirt. So what if my father saw the bruises from Shane? I didn't really care right now. However, I was too afraid and panicked to move, which meant I couldn't pull down my collar.

Silence.

I couldn't hear a single word from any of them. They had left. My father looked nervously around, standing up to peak out the window. I took that moment to fold my collar, sighing silently to myself in relief as a small, faint breeze cooled down my neck. However, the room was still hot as it was, which meant my skin was still hot. I rolled up my damp sleeves, not bothering to pick off the bits of black cotton sticking to my skin.

My father and I crept over to Hershel and Glenn. "Why won't they leave?" Glenn whispered, complaining.

"Would you?" Hershel asked.

"We can't stay here any longer," my father told us. "We'll sneak out the back and run to the car."

"What if they have men back there?" I asked him. I knew better than to question him, but I was fearing the worse.

"Don't worry," he replied. "We'll do what we have to…"

Which meant to kill them. Simple. He was right. As we stood up, still crouching down, Glenn tripped over a chair. I bit my lip as the chair created such a noise that would have caused a bear to jump right out of his skin after being in the silence for so long. We quickly returned to our hiding place.

"_Must have been a few Corpses!_" one of the men said. "_C'mon._"

I gripped my gun so tightly; I lost feeling in my knuckles as the men approached the bar. My father clicked a bullet into the chamber of his revolver. I gave him a scarred look, but his eyes remained fixed on the doors. The door swung open about a foot before Glenn lunged forward, slamming the door back into the hinges. He pushed himself up against the crack, keeping it shut. An angry look appeared on my father's face, yet I was unsure of which reason; Glenn doing what he did, or that the men were so close to being able to kill us.

"Hey!" someone said, much louder than from before. "If someone's in there, we don't want no trouble! Just looking for our friends!"

Someone else said to bust down the door.

"We don't want no trouble! We're just looking for our friends. If something happened, tell us. This place is crawling with Corpses! If you could help us not get killed, we'd appreciate it."

Like hell we would. I looked over at my father. He performed the Holy Trinity. I had thought that he was becoming religious again, but I realized the answer was no. This was a life or death situation. Of course now he prayed. All was silent, until my father mustered the courage to speak. "They drew on us!" he shouted through the door. Hershel instantly lowered his gun, rolling his eyes in anger, clutching his forehead at my father's mistake. He shot my father a dangerous glare, and I couldn't help but not to either. _You're gonna get us killed! _I mouthed.

"Dave and Tony in there? They alive?"

"No," he told them.

"Let's just go-" someone said.

"No. I'm not going back to everyone to tell them Dave and Tony got shot by some assholes in a bar!"

"You're friends drew on us!" my father shouted. "They gave us _no_ choice! I'm sure we've all lost enough people! Some things, we- we wish we didn't have to, but it's like that now. You _know_ that! So let's just talk it down to what it was! Wrong place. Wrong-"

Suddenly, the glass above Glenn's head exploded as a bullet sent through. Hershel pulled me back as shards fell when I was hiding. My father shot up, shooting at the men through the hole. "_Go!_" he barked at us. "_Get out of here!"_

The three of us attempted to sneak out, but the gunshots prevented such an act. Instead, we were forced into hiding. I flipped over a table, hiding behind it. But, it was too late to realize my mistake. A bullet shot straight through the wood, sinking into the side of my thigh. I couldn't contain myself from _not_ crying out in pain. I cradled my thigh, covering my mouth with my other hand to try and keep the noise down. Second time getting shot, both times on my father's watch. And the first was only a graze. I knew I was done with helping my father, and back to laundry. That is, if I didn't bleed out before my mother chastised me.

Hershel shot me a quick look before sliding his shotgun over to Glenn. As fast as his old limbs would take him, he grabbed me from under the arms, dragging me to safety where he was hiding. He rolled up my blood-soaked shorts, looking down at the wound. "I can't see in this dark," he whispered. I shifted through my other pocket, pulling out a small pocket flashlight. I knew this was a waste of battery, but Hershel was concerned. The light flashed on my wound. "It doesn't look too bad," he said. "I don't think it punctured anything, but we won't know for sure until we get back to the farmhouse."

"Hey!" my father shouted to the men. "We both know this is _not _gonna end well! There's nothing in it for anyone!"

"Lucile," Hershel whispered. "I know you might not be able to, but you need to try and run once we get out of here."

I nodded, knowing how much pain I would feel. However, I had a feeling adrenaline would save me. "There's a First Aid kit in the truck. There's not much, but what ever we have must suffice."

My father slid back down against the wall, giving each of us a worried glance. His eyes fell to the blood on my leg. His jaw locked. Hershel slowly stood up, pulling me with him. I managed to keep from screaming as I put pressure on my leg. Glenn stood as well, rushing past us. There was nothing but silence. The warm blood trickled down my leg. I felt lightheaded, stumbling from my position. The room began to spin, and my legs gave out. Hershel gripped my shoulders as I collided with the ground. Suddenly, a gunshot went off, and my father shouted. The last thing I saw before passing out was my father running over to me.

_"C'mon, Lucy!" Carl shouted from the water of the small in ground pool nestled in our patio, the sun beating down. "Get in!"_

_ "No," I told him, scrunching up in my lawn chair. "I don't trust you."_

"_Lucy! Please? It's like bathwater!"_

_ "Carl-"_

_ I shrieked as a wave of water splashed at me, sending varies of chills down my spine. My brother laughed, and so did someone else. I realized it was my father. I pulled myself up out of the chair, stumbling as I tried to find myself up onto the porch. The rocks under my feet switched to the wooden steps. I tripped going up, cursing as I latched onto the railing. Once the wooden steps became the cement porch, I stood up. I walked forward until I slammed into the glass door, gripping my nose. _

_ "Lucy?" _

_ My mother called to me from inside the house, opening the glass door. "I didn't realize you were coming in."_

_ "Why'd you close the door?" I spat, yanking away from her as I felt her hands on my shoulders. _

_ "The cold air was getting out."_

_ "You should've said something!"_

_ "Lucy," she said in a calm, sad saddened tone. "I figured you were coming in with your dad and Carl-"_

_ "I figured you would leave the door open knowing your daughter is _blind _because of you!"_

A warm hand shook my shoulder violently. My eyes darted open, staring right into my father's blue eyes. My hands flew to my leg. I fingers fell onto something soft, much like a cloth. I looked down; realizing either he or Hershel had taken down one of the curtains, and wrapped it around my wound.

"We gotta go," he told me, pulling me off the ground. "I'll hold them off. Hershel, take Lucy and cover Glenn. Get to your truck, then swing around." The older man nodded.

"You want me to cover Glenn…?"

"You missed all that gun training. Could've come in handy now."

"I can shoot. I just don't like to."

My father opened his arms to me, giving Hershel a long look. I threw my arm over his shoulders, and he wrapped his arm around my waist. "I got you."

He gave Hershel a quick nod, and the three of use began moving. My father practically had to drag me most of the way. I felt useless; nothing more than dead weight. I knew what I had to do, and what had to be done.

"Leave me here," I told my father. He ignored me, or at least acted as if he did. "Dad."

"No," he told me sternly.

"Rick," I spat, the first time I ever called him by his first name. I looked at me, glaring. I felt dizzy once more. However, I stood my ground. "I wasn't asking. Leave me here. You guys need to get out. Come back for me when it's safe," I told him. "Or not at all."

"That's the blood loss, Rick," Hershel said. "She's hysteric. We need to get her back to the house, or she'll die-"

"What do you think I'm trying to do!?" my father spat.

I tried to pull away, but his grip hardened. Hershel opened a door. My father handed me over to him, who held onto me just as my father did. I watched the door shut as the two of us entered the backroom. I pulled out my gun with my free hand. A shotgun immediately pointed at Hershel chest, and Glenn's face came into view. Hershel raised his free hand, the one clutching his gun. "Rick wants you to try for the car."

"Try?"

"_Try,_" Hershel said. "And succeed. I'll cover you."

"This is a great plan," Glenn said, sighing. "What about Lucy? She can't even walk."

"I'll be fine." I pushed out of Hershel's arms, barely able to stand. I grunted, spreading my legs to gain balance. I held my gun in both hands. Glenn pushed the doors open, slowly stepping out after surveying the area. He crouched to the ground. I stood beside Hershel, hanging outside of the door. Glenn was slow, trying his best not to make a sound. Suddenly, a gunshot erupted, and he fell to the ground. Hershel and I turned to an African-American man standing there, smoke rising from his gun. Hershel and I both aimed at him, firing at the same time. Unfortunately, we both missed his head, getting him both in the stomach. He collapsed with a moan.

"What happened?"

I turned around, staring at my father. "He fired," Hershel said. He looked to Glenn. We all did. "He must of hit Glenn. He's behind the dumpster. Doesn't look like he's moving."

My father slid past us, moving along the wall as he made his way to Glenn. "You hit?" he whispered. I tensed. No reply. "Are you hit?"

"No." I relaxed. My father looked back to me, signaling for me to come to him. I limped over, leaning on him for support.

We crouched down next to Glenn. "It's alright. The car's right there. We're almost home. You good?"

"I'm good."

"Lucy?"

I nodded. I couldn't help but shudder at the man's moans. "Let's go." We started out, but a hidden gun fired, shooting the dumpster. "Get back!" We peaked out past the dumpster, spotting a man standing on the roof of Steve's Pharmacy. He lowered his gun as a large white truck approached, halting to a complete stop. "Let's go!" the driver shouted. "There's corpses all over the place!"

No… I knew the gunshots would attract them. I just hoped they wouldn't.

"What about Shawn?" the man shooting at us called back.

"Don't worry about him! Corpses are everywhere!"

"How do I get down?"

"_Jump!_" the man hesitated, looking down over the roof. "Hurry up! Jump already!"

And so he did.

He slammed onto the sloped roof of the next building, sliding off. A loud slice followed by a scream caused me to shut my eyes, and grip onto my father's shirt. He wrapped his arm holding a shotgun around me.

"He didn't make it," Glenn whispered.

He pleaded for help.

"I gotta go!" the driver shouted. "I'm sorry!" The truck pulled down the road, making a fast getaway from the town.

As the man continued to cry, my father turned to Glenn. "Get Hershel." He stood up with me, and we rushed over to the man. The man I shot was screaming at the top of his lungs. I looked back, my eyes widening in fear as a group of Walkers dug at his flesh. My father tugged on me, and we stood at the feet of the man. Getting I good look, I realized he wasn't a man. He was a kid, maybe a few years older than me.

"Rick!" Hershel called as he joined us. "We have to go now. I'm sorry son, we have to go."

"No! Don't leave me!" the injured boy sobbed. "Please!"

"We can't just leave him!" I argued with Hershel. "They'll get him!"

"We have to go."

"We can't," my father said, siding with me.

"He was just shooting at us!" Glenn shouted.

"We were shooting at them!" I spat.

"He's just a kid!"

"This place is crawling with Walkers!" Glenn said, loosing his temper.

"We can't leave him!"

Hershel grabbed the kid's leg, examining it. "The spike went clean through! There's no way we'll take it off in one piece."

My father angrily shook the railing. "Shut up or I will shoot you!" I punched my father as hard as I could in the arm.

"You shaking the railing isn't going to make things better!" I told him.

"Stay out of this!"

"No!" I spat, grabbing his gun despite him trying to push me away. "If you wanted me to _stay out of this_, you shouldn't have brought me with in the first place!"

"Lucile-!"

"Don't you _Lucile _me! Stop being an ass!"

"Guys!" Glenn interrupted. "We're wasting time!"

"He's right," Hershel said. "If you two keep bickering like this, we'll never get back."

My father snatched his gun back from me, glaring. I stepped to the kid's side, allowing him to grip my hand as the pain shook his body. I looked down at the blood soaked curtain on my thigh. My gunshot was _nothing_ compared to this. Glenn gripped his foot, and he screamed once more.

"Shut up!" he begged. Glenn pulled back. "I'm sorry! Just, please shut up!"

"We should just put him down!" Hershel said. "I don't want to see anymore killing, but-"

"Can't we just take the leg off?" Glenn asked.

The kid struggled to sit up, so I pushed on his back. He froze at the words "take the leg off", and I felt a small panic attack rising within me. All the blood… No. I stood up straight. Blood was nothing to complain about. Not anymore.

"Is that hatchet still in the car?" my father asked. I shook my head.

"No!" the kid begged. "Please! Don't take my leg off!"

My father pulled out his pocketknife, swishing the blade out. He held it up for Hershel. "Will this cut through the bone?"

"I'll have to sever the ligaments below the kneecap, cut above the tibia… He's gonna lose his lower leg."

"But all the blood will attract more Walkers!" I told him.

"They'll be distracted as long as they're still eating that boy."

My father shoved past me, slamming the kid down. His fingernails dug into my flesh. I bit my lip as I felt light trickles of blood forming at my skin. Hershel tied his over shirt around his leg.

Suddenly, groans and shuffling of feet entered my ear. Glenn heard it too. He peeked over the side of the building. "Guys!" he said, uneasy. "_Walkers!_"

"Shut up!" my father growled to the boy once more. "Lucy! Go help Glenn! _Now!_"

I did as I was told, yanking my hand away from the boy. I hissed as his fingernails took a chunk of my skin. Limping over to Glenn as fast as I could, I braced myself against the wall so I would not fall over. I aimed my gun at the Walkers, pulling the trigger. I swore under my breath as the first bullet only nicked its shoulder. As it stumbled back, I pulled the trigger again, blowing the decaying brains out. It fell to the dark ground, still as a rock other than when the others stumbled over him.

I killed my first Walker! However, now was not the time to celebrate. More Walkers fells from our guns. "_Oh God! They're everywhere!"_ I heard my father shouting, and more gunshots.

"I need more hands!" Hershel yelled.

More Walkers appeared from the dark woods surrounding us. "We gotta _go_!" Glenn shouted, leaving me to defend us by myself. But it was useless. We would never stop them.

"I'm almost out of ammo!" my father shouted. I was too, but I had my extra clip. I fired my last shot, backing up, as the Walkers got closer. I reloaded my gun with shaking hands.

"We don't have much time!" Glenn screamed. "We gotta go!"

I fired into the crowd. "Hershel! We gotta do it now!"

I figured shooting the Walkers would keep my mind off of all the blood. Glenn gripped my shoulder, pulling me towards the car. I knew what it meant. We had wasted time and ammo trying to save this kid, but we were unable to. But I also knew my father couldn't just leave a _kid_ to die. What if it were Carl. Or me?

"Please don't leave me! Ple-"

What happened next, I almost couldn't comprehend. The blood. All the blood. I had to shut my eyes as my father forced the kid's leg off the spike, thrusting the leg up. So much blood rained down, splattering everywhere. His scream of pain I thought would shatter my eardrums. My father and Glenn pulled him off the dumpster, carrying him as fast as their feet would take them. I opened the door for them, and they sat the kid inside. It didn't take long for him to pass out from blood loss. Hershel climbed in up front with my father. Glenn and I sat in the back. We both had out guns ready, prepared if he were to try something. As the Walkers threw themselves at us, my father stepped on the gas pedal, breaking through the jumble. We left Carol's vehicle behind, and I only prayed she wouldn't throw a fit over it.

XXX

Morning was quick to come. I hadn't realized how early in the morning it was when we rescued the kid. I figured it was still at least ten, only because none of us appeared to be tired. But now I know it was only adrenaline, and the pain from my gunshot quickly returned. "When we get back, I'll have to take care of him first, and then your daughter."

"No," my father spat.

"I'm fine, Dad."

"No, you're not," Hershel said. "You could have an infection. Patricia will presumably be helping me… And the surgery for that boy could drag on. Maybe Maggie would be willing to help you."

We approached the familiar mailbox that read "Greene". My father pulled down the curving road that was about two miles long. I stared out the window at the fence posts. The farm came into view. We passed the cattle grazing in the fields. As we passed Shane, Andrea, Daryl, and T-Dog gathering around the Hyundai, they ran after us.

As we came to a stop, I couldn't help but smile as Carl and my mother exited from the farmhouse with everyone else. I got out of the truck. "Dad!" Carl cried, running to us. "Lucy!"

Our father hugged him, and the three of us walked over to my mother for a large family group hug.

"Patricia," Hershel said, walking past, "prepare the shed for surgery. Maggie, I need you to take care of Lucy."

"What happened?" My mother asked, fear rising in her voice. I pulled back, showing her my leg. She gasped. "Rick! You let her get _shot_?"

"We were getting shot. I didn't _let _it happen."

"By who?"

"It doesn't matter. What happened to you?"

"I was in a car accident."

"_Accident?_ How?"

"I went looking for you."

Maggie grasped my arm, pulling me up to the porch. I watched my mother as she and my father continued to talk. "Who the hell is that?"

We all looked to the truck, at the kid. "That's Randall," Glenn said. The rest of the group walked towards the truck, except for Maggie and I. We walked through the farmhouse door, right into the bedroom my brother had surgery in.

"Sit," she said, pushing me down on the bed. She pulled off the curtain, cringing as she stared at my wound. There was a hole with dark, torn, bloody flesh around a bullet. Dried blood caked around my leg. "I'll be right back…"

She pushed through the door. I couldn't help but to just prod the gunshot. It was gushy, and wet. The door opened, but instead of Maggie, Glenn came in. "She just left."

Glenn nodded, sitting down in the chair placed in the corner of the room. Maggie stepped it, holding a pile of medical supplies. "I asked Glenn to help."

Maggie pulled a pair of tweezers from the bag, digging it into the bullet. Reflexes kicking in, my leg jerked, and Maggie pulled the tweezers away. "Glenn, I need you to hold her leg down."

The Korean gripped my ankle and the top of my thigh, holding my leg down as best as he could. Maggie dug the tweezers in once more, removing the bullet with a pop. I bit the insides of my mouth, gripping onto the sheets. She poured rubbing alcohol down in the hole. The stinging managed to force me to scream. Maggie pushed a pillowcase up against the hole.

The burning and tingling lasted a few minutes before it stopped. Maggie pulled a pill bottle out of the bag, prying the lid open. She handed me two pills, which I struggled to swallow without any water. She waited for the meds to kick in before pulling out a roll of black string, and a needle. What I thought were painkillers were actually sleeping pills. My eyelids grew heavy, and sleep overtook me, into a dreamless oblivion, where Walkers didn't exist, and the world was normal again.

**AN: Hell YEAH! Lucy killed her first Walker!... And got shot… Don't forget about the partnership, reading Here is Gone, Reviewing, Faving, Following, and loving!**


	23. Chapter 23

**AN: All right… Guys, I'm worried about you. PM me about what you guys want to happen, and I'll try to make it possible! If you guys were worried about the no more Daryl/Oc thing, just please, please, hold onto your horses and wait! Don't give up hope!**

**Anyways, I was playing Mass Effect 3, and I got to the part where after you kill your first Reaper, Legion is uploading the codes, and I skipped the dialogue and had NO idea he was going to blow up the Fleet… And I cried when Tali committed suicide. Everyone I love dies! So, I'm taking that anger out on this chapter, channeling it through Lucy when she blows up on someone and tries to put them in their place. (If you didn't play ME3 and have no idea what I'm talking about… Well… Sucks to be you then) Especially now that I beat the game and got the worse possible ending! I got the Extended Cut DLC, so now I shall try again. **

_**Today's Fact: **_**Lucy used to play the Saxophone before she was rendered blind. **

_**Chapter 23**_

_A loud knocking came from the front door. "Mommy?" the three year-old me called. "Daddy? The door-" I realized they weren't around, and I panicked. As a young child would, thinking they were abandoned. I slid off the small couch, my bare feet padding across the finished wooden floors. I opened the door a crack, peaking my head out. "Grammy!"_

_ The door flew open as my grandmother stood before me. She had a large smile on her face as she smoothed out her sweater with one hand, and clutching a plastic bag in the other. I could see through the bag that there was a large box wrapped in vibrant pink wrapping paper. Back then but no longer, pink happened to be my favorite color. I hugged her leg, and she wrapped her arms around me. "How's my favorite granddaughter?" she asked with an upbeat to her voice as I pulled back. _

_ I swayed, rocking on my feet as I swung my arms. "Good- Guess what?"_

_ "What, Lucy?" she asked me, leaning in._

_ "Today's my birthday," I said, very seriously with a nod. My grandmother ruffled my then brown curly hair that my mother spent almost an hour trying to curl._

_ "I know! And I made you something extra special."_

_ She pointed to the bag. Suddenly, an arm wrapped around my tiny waist pulling me up in the air with a squeal. My father spun me around in the air like a helicopter. "Happy Birthday, Lucy Lu!" he said with a laugh. My mother stood feet away, smiling at us as she cradled her swollen stomach. _

_ As my father put me down, my grandmother entered the living room. "Such a beautiful house, Rick," she said, gazing at the décor. "Where can I put this?" my grandmother asked, holding out the bag. _

_ "I'll take it!" I said, stepping forward. My father pushed me back, laughing,_

_ "Why don't you let me take it back? 'Kay?"_

_ "Okay…"_

_ "Rick, it's almost five," my mother said. "Do you want to do it now?" _

_ "Might as well… To the kitchen!" my father said with an excited shout. I skipped ahead of him as the four of us made way towards the room. My father beckoned for me to sit down at the table. I pulled out my designated chair, the one that had several pillows always stacked so I could reach the table. My grandmother pushed me in, taking the seat directly beside me. My father pulled out the gift from my grandmother, placing it with several others. _

_ A knocking came from the glass sliding doors in the kitchen. I looked over as my mother passed me, opening the doors and letting him in. My father's best friend who even back then was nothing but an enemy. _

_ Shane Walsh. _

_ "Happy Birthday, Lucy," he said, handing me a small box wrapped with sparkling wrapping paper and a small purple bow. I looked at my dad, my eyes begging to open it. Sure, Shane was an enemy, but I was a three year-old kid! I wasn't going to say no to a present, especially one with sparkling paper. My father smiled. "Go ahead." I yanked the bow off, placing it on the table as my mother liked to keep bows. I pulled the paper off, and out came a small white box. I set it on the table, struggling to pull the lid off._

_ I realized it was taped shut. "Here," my grandmother took it, prying her sharp nails under the tape. She handed the box back, and I pulled the lid off finally. My eyes lit up as I pulled a silver necklace from the box, holding it up for everyone to see. It had a crescent moon pendent forged out of crystal. "Thank you, Uncle Shane!"_

_ Again, I still hated him, but it was a pretty necklace. "No problem, Lu." My father handed me the gift from my grandmother. "Thank you, Grammy!" She smiled as I tore the paper off. I took the lid off the box. So much tissue paper. I threw it all around, not realizing that Shane was picking it up. My hands grazed something soft. I stopped; looking down at a small doll my grandmother had made me from string she made herself out wool she purchased._

I held the doll in my hands, caressing the face with my thumb. I hung my head remembering my grandmother. How happy she was when I opened the gift. The doll was one of the only things from her I was able to snag before we had to leave our home for Atlanta. I ran my hand over my face, gripping my injured thigh. I heard someone cough from the entrance of the tent – Hershel wasn't too keened of me leaving the house, but truth be told, it was lonely. I was so familiar with having my brother sleep beside me, that when I was alone, I hated it.

I looked up at my father. I tucked the doll behind me. "Can we talk?"

"No," I said, dryly. "I have nothing to say to you."

"I want to talk about last night."

"And I don't," I spat. I stood up off the cot, pushing past him and out into the open. I inhaled the fresh air, taking a seat beside my mother as she shoveled a forkful of eggs into her mouth. She swallowed, turning to me as I stared into the fire before me. T-Dog nodded to me, scooping a spoonful of eggs and a slab of SPAM on a pie tin, handing it to me with a fork. "Happy Birthday," he said, tossing me a room temperature bottle of water.

"Thanks…" I replied, catching the bottle and taking a bite of eggs right after. My mother placed her hand on my back. We both looked at each other and I swallowed my eggs. She glanced behind me. I followed her gaze, landing on my father. He was talking to Shane. I returned to my food, uncapping my water and taking a long sip. But my mother's hand didn't disappear. I heard my brother laughing, and I looked up, smiling as Glenn and he tossed a baseball back and forth.

"Happy Birthday," Andrea said softly as she walked past me, holding three plates of food. She walked over to my father and Shane, handing them each a plate before she went inside the RV, eating solitary.

"Lucy," my mother said. "I didn't swallow those pills."

"I know you didn't," I told her. "I knew you would do the right thing."

My mother smiled, though her eyes were glassy, "I appreciate that… Happy Birthday."

I finished my eggs. I took one bite of the SPAM before sputtering, and giving it to my mother. I was never one for SPAM… Bad experiences in the past. "How's your leg?"

"Eh. It's just pretty sore. Hershel said the stitches won't stay in long."

"That's good."

I gave the pie tin to my mother. I excused myself from breakfast. I had one thing and one thing only on my mind. Randall. My father and Shane were going to get rid of him today. But I had my own questions that the others were too scared to ask. As I walked past my brother and Glenn, my Korean friend called me back. "Hey! Happy Birthday."

"Thanks, Glenn."

"If you're looking for Daryl, he moved away from us all." I stopped walking, and looked back to him.

"Why would I be looking for him?"

Glenn swallowed a lump in his throat, and flashed Carl a look. "No," I stated. "No. No. That's… No more."

I ran to the shed before he could continue. I didn't know the combination to the padlock, but out of sheer luck- actually a few minutes of trial and error, plus unnecessary swearing- I got the door open, and I entered the dark room. My eyes met with Randall. Neither of us said a word. Randall's mouth look cracked, and I realized no one was bothering to take care of him. He was handcuffed to a small pole, and he sat hunched on the floor. A thought swept my mind to just get out of there. But, he looked frightened. I couldn't.

"Y-you're that girl..." he suddenly said in a parched voice. "You were there that night."

Now that I was actually in here, I wanted to leave. It felt uncomfortable. It was hot, smelled terrible, and there was a stranger held captive. I took a step back, shifting towards the door. I left the shed, shutting the door from behind. I shut the padlock. "No! Please, come back," I bit my bottom lip nervously. "Please!" I turned on my heels, slowly walking back towards the camp, pulling my jacket tightly around me. "Can I have some water, or something to eat? Please?"

I froze. I knew I shouldn't. He pleaded again, and I felt so much guilt. What if the shoes were swapped? I frowned, running back to my mother. She hadn't touched the SPAM in my pie tin. I knew it was making her sick. I took it from her, bending down to also snag my water. She raised her eyebrows. "You're going to that boy, aren't you?"

"No," I lied. "We shouldn't be wasting food."

"Don't go near that boy," she warned. Damn.

"I won't," I said, trying to hide the smile tugging on the corners of my mouth as I lied to her, walking towards the farmhouse. Once I was out of my mother's sight, I ducked behind the old house, swinging back to the shed. I had an hour, tops, before my father was going to fetch Randall. I pulled the lock off the door once again, stepping inside. I shut the door behind me, holding onto the padlock. I sat in front of Randall,

"Which do you want first?"

"What is that?" he asked, nodding towards the SPAM.

"SPAM. Don't fuss about it because nobody even knows I'm in here. They think I'm in the house."

"Water, please." I was actually surprised with how well he was behaving, seeing as that my father ripped his leg from a fence spike, and was now a prisoner. I wasn't complaining.

I screwed the cap off, moving closer to him so I could tilt the bottle and so he could actually drink it. I watched his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed the water. Within thirty seconds he had half of the bottle empty. I pulled back. "Does your dad own this place?"

"It depends who you think my father is."

"Pretty sure he's the guy who kept shoving his damn gun in my face." I snorted.

"That's him, but no, we're just guests here."

I held up the SPAM to his mouth, holding it as he tore a chunk off. He cringed, but I knew his hunger took over, for he had the bite swallowed. Even starving, SPAM was something I think anyone would pass on. Or maybe that's just me. He took another bite. "How'd you end up here?" he asked, still chewing.

"Well… That's a long story, but I think we have the time. We were at an old quarry, and we got attacked. And then we were at the Center of Disease Control, but that blew up the second day we were there."

"That sucks."

"Yeah. After the CDC we were at a nursing home just outside of Atlanta, where we had a bunch of allies. But they were all slaughtered in cold blood, and then Walkers came by-"

"Walkers?"

"The corpses."

"Hmm." He finished off the SPAM.

"And after that, we were going towards Fort Benning."

"The fort's gone."

"So we've been told. We were at that highway with all the abandoned vehicles scavenging, when a herd of Walkers came through. We had a little girl, her name was Sophia. She belonged to an older member of the group. She got spooked, and ran off. My father, his best friend, and my little brother went out looking, and my brother got shot. The man that shot him brought them here, and… The rest doesn't matter."

He looked at the floor. I offered him the water, and he swallowed the rest of it. "Your name's Lucy, right?"

"Yeah." Our eyes met again. He squinted, leaning in. I was pretty sure he wore glasses before this. He stopped. I knew he was looking at the scars dotting my eyes.

"What are those scars from?"

"There's another story," by now, I felt comfortable talking to him. He didn't seem like a threat. "When I was fourteen, my mother and I were in a really bad car accident. The glass from the windshield shattered, and both of my eyes were stabbed. And my forehead," I said, pulling my hair back to reveal a large scar on my hairline that I had never shown anyone except for my family. "The glass only went in enough to blind them, not in all the way that my eyes were shred into little pieces. So, I was blind, as I had said. And at the CDC, the doctor did some… complicated ass surgery and here I am, hence the scars."

"How old are you?"

"Sixteen, as of today." Wow, it felt cool to say that.

"Oh… Happy Birthday."

I smiled a little. "You're seventeen? Eighteen? Nineteen?"

"Eighteen."

Finally someone I met that was around my age other than Beth and Jimmy. I opened my mouth to ask him where he was from, when suddenly the door swung open, allowing a large shaft of light in. Rough hands gripped my upper arms, dragging me out of the shed. I kicked at the wooden flooring, trying to dig my feet in. "Let go of me!"

I was thrown to the ground, and a hand yanked the padlock out of my pocket. I stared into the angry brown eyes of Shane. "What the _hell_ were you doin' in there!?" he spat. I gave him the finger, and his boot swung into my gut. I hunched over. "_**What the hell were you doing in there!**_"

"Stop following me around!"

"_**Answer me!**_"

"Why? So you can go 'tell on me' like you always do?"

I screamed as his foot collided with my gut again, harder than before.

I heard my father shouting at Shane from not too far away, but he ignored him. "You little _bitch!_" he growled at me, gripping the collar of my jacket. "_**What did you tell that rat!**_"

"Randall's not the rat, you are, asshole!"

Shane took one hand away from my collar, raising his free hand, preparing to slap me. I raised my arms defensively, squeezing my eyes shut. Suddenly, a gun clicked, and Shane froze. I opened my eyes, peaking over my arms as my father stood with his revolver aimed at Shane's head. Nobody was watching us, surprisingly. "Lay another hand on my children again and _I will shoot you._" Shane let go of my jacket,

"She's crazy, man."

"I'm not going to say it again."

"She attacked me!"

I sprung up at the lie, my face turning red as I lunged at him, tackling him with my tiny body. I pulled my fists back, slamming them into his gut, over and over. He pried at my shoulders. My father latched onto my upper arms. As he tried to pull me away, I anchored myself around Shane's waist. My hands gripped around Shane's neck, and I began to strangle him with all my strength. My father was shouting at me, and finally he yanked me away. He helped Shane up with one hand while he held my back his other arm, fighting against me as I clawed at Shane.

Shane looked shocked at what I had done. I just attacked him. But he lied. And it felt good. I had had it with his shit.

Shane stormed inside of the shed to retrieve Randall for the trip. I swatted my father away, gritting my teeth almost to powder as angst filled my soul.

"Lucy-"

"Leave me alone," I spat. "Don't talk to me! I've had it! Either Shane leaves or consider yourself daughterless!" And I was dead serious. I would leave this group. I could pry myself from this group, from everything. I could do it, and I wasn't trying to sound like a bitch.

XXX

I took upon what Glenn had told me, and I decided to pay Daryl a visit. Not to cry about Shane, but just to see how he was holding up since yesterday. My father left without a single word to me, but that was only because I walked away whenever he approached. Smoke rose from a small fire in Daryl's new camp. As I approached, I watched him as he cleaned his cross bow. "What do you want?" he growled, not looking at me. "You damn women need to piss off!"

"Daryl-"

"'Daryl! Come save the day! Daryl! Come rescue my dumbass husband and bitch daughter in the town! Daryl! Come beat up Shane! Daryl! Come save my twelve year-old kid while I sit here _doin' nothing!'_" he mocked Carol, my mother, and myself very, very pissed.

"Daryl! Stop being a dick! Daryl! Take a God damn happy pill! Daryl! Stop acting like you're the only one who was looking for Sophia! Daryl! Forgive my mother for not going after us while she was busy helping out _while you sat out here on your ass and she's pregnant!_ Daryl! Daryl! _Daryl!_" I spat back. "I'm sorry that my family is blind to everything Shane does! I'm sorry that you believed in some stupid legend that just because you found some ugly ass flower and thought we would find Sophia! I'm sorry you're such a damn idiot! I'm sorry you think you're the only one who lost _anything!_"

Daryl gripped my shoulders. I shoved away. "Stop touching me! You and everyone else in this damn group need to stop prodding me all the time!" I screamed, beginning to see red. "I didn't come out here to ask for your useless help! Unlike everyone else I wanted to see how my _friend_ was doing!"

"I was doin' _fine _until you and your skank-ass showed up!"

"Skank-ass? You're the pervert that made out with me at the CDC. You took advantage of a drunken girl! Blind, nonetheless! And that makes _me_ the skank? And seeing as that I've _never _been in a relationship? _Ever? Do you see me pawing after anyone?_"

He didn't say anything, but I could tell he was just as mad as I was. "You're no better than your mom!"

"Again, seeing as that I never cheated on anyone-"

"You're useless! You sit around tryin' fool us into thinkin' you ain't by cleaning! Survivin''s a lot more than washing clothing! Hell, you're lucky no one doesn't throw your ass out!"

"I've done _nothing_ wrong! And at least I didn't shoot you in the head like Andrea! And you think _she's_ doing a good job? Sitting on her ass all day 'on watch'? And may I remind you I'm a damn kid!?"

"You're fifteen! Don't stop your _twelve_ year-old brother from helping!"

"I'm sixteen-"

"Exactly! You're a damn woman! Stop playing dolls with Lori and help with what needs done!"

"If this is about Sophia-!"

"_Don't bring her into this!_"

"I didn't go looking for her because I _knew _she was dead! I was the only one in this group using their damn _brain_ to know a little kid can't survive on her own out there!"

"That don't mean _shit!_"

"And if I'm so useless, how is it that I_ volunteered_ to get the gun bag and find your pot head trash brother in Atlanta while I was _blind!_ How is it that I_ volunteered_ to go find Hershel while you sat here being a bitch to everyone who tried to talk to you! I'm useless? _I'm useless? I wasn't asked to help!_" I shook my head in disgust. "Then that just makes you a pathetic, pansy assed redneck scumbag."

I turned on my heels, balling my hands into fists as I stalked away from Daryl. I didn't feel bad whatsoever.

"Ain't no homo," I heard Daryl mutter.

Today… today I had relinquished gallons of anger I had held in for so long… And I just exploded on two people… Three, if you'll count my father.

I should get out of here for a while so I could clear my head. I was going to blow up on someone else. I burst through the tent flap of my family's home, grabbing my backpack. I slid my arms through the straps, straightening my back. Suddenly, a weight disappeared from my bag and something thumped onto the ground. I turned around, picking up a grey, decent sized hatchet. I stared at the blade in confusion, until I realized my mother gave it to me back at the highway.

And then I remembered the gun Daryl gave me. I wasn't going to use that thing. I tucked the hatchet in the waistband of my pants next to my gun, pulling my shirt and jacket down over the blade. I checked to make sure my shoes were tied before leaving the tent. I didn't check my bag, because I knew what was in it. Daryl's gun, my father's knife, my grandmother's doll, my necklace from Shane, a few photos of my family, a water bottle, a crushed bag of trail mix, and some other things like matches, socks, a ball of twine…

It was time to go exploring. Disregarding my thigh, I ducked out of the tent. No one was around, except for whoever was on watch. I slid along the RV, and past the campsite. My breath hitched in my throat as I saw Jimmy finishing the graves from the barn. If he was still distracted, I knew I could make it. His eyes fixed on Sophia's grave. As he pulled off his cowboy hat, I ran, biting my tongue as my thigh protested. It would be nice to get away for a little bit.

As I took my first step into the forest, the natural beauty of the tall green trees, the bushes with budding flowers, the clover patches, took me back… Where others would find hideousness, I found beauty in this vast landscape. I pulled out my hatchet, lazily hacking through the tangles of vegetation as I delved deeper and deeper inside. I now understood why my brother always ventured off. It was peaceful.

A few bushes rustled, but I knew it was either a Walker or an animal. I crouched down, remaining silent as a small rabbit tumbled out of the bush. It looked around for a few seconds. I took a few steps forward. A twig snapped, and the rabbit looked at me. I frowned as I realized it was about to run. I positioned my hatchet, swinging it down over the rabbit's head. Blood trickled as the skull cracked. I pulled the dead animal up by its feet. I thought about cutting off a foot and making a lucky rabbit foot. Why not? Daryl made a necklace out of Walker ears.

I flattened the rabbit on the ground, pulling my hatchet up. I swung it down, cringing as the foot removed from the body. I took out a sock from my bag, the twine, and my knife. I cut the sock up into strips, tying a few around the bleeding stump and I fastened the twine around it. I tied the twine around the rabbit's waist, hanging it upside down as I tied a strung the attached twine through my belt loops, letting the dead rabbit hang. I needed the blood in the rabbit's foot to drain out, but it wouldn't on its own. Cringing, I clamped down with my teeth on the foot, sucking the blood out like a vampire.

I spit out the blood, coughing as some went down my throat. I sucked until no more blood came out. I coughed again, pulling the foot away. I knew I was going to probably get sick from this. I wiped the blood from my mouth, but I let the blood in my teeth stay, only because I had nothing to get it out with. I took a strip of the sock, fastening it to the bloody part of the foot. I tied the twine around it, making a makeshift keychain. I stood up as my prizes hung from my waist. I picked up my hatchet, going deeper, deeper yet into the woods.

I felt really proud of myself. A murky stream came ahead of my path. A few boulders sat ahead. I perched on top of the biggest one. A moth flew past my head, followed my a few gnats that nipped at my face. I slapped my skin, trapping and crunching them under my hand. My bangs whipped around my face in the breeze. I grabbed my braid as it started to move. But not because of the breeze.

A hand clasped on mine, pulling me down off of the rock. The back of my head collided with the ground, and my vision blurred. I rubbed my eyes, blinking away the fuzz. Two men stood above me. Two men holding machetes. My hand clasped my hatchet that had fallen inches away. The closest man saw it, kicking it away. _Kill or be killed, _I heard a voice sounding just like my father's say to me.

"What's your name, sweetheart?" the man asked.

_Kill or be killed_.

"You gotta group somewhere?"

_Kill or be killed_.

"Food? Water?"

Kill or be killed.

"No? So no one will miss you after we-" I bit onto the man's ankle. He screamed, and I pulled his machete from his hands, driving it into the hand that reached towards me. He screamed again, but his companion was dazed. I grabbed my hatchet, raising it above the fallen man's head.

"No!" he pleaded. "Don't kill me!"

"Why?" I sneered. "So you can kill my family? My _friends_? _Take my home!_ _Rape me!"_

The hatchet came flying down into his skull with a sickening pop. Blood poured from his head and his mouth. I yanked the machete and hatchet from him, preparing to strike his companion. His jaw dropped to the floor, and he took a step back, raising his hands in surrender. "Please, don't kill me."

"Why?"

"I have a family! A wife, a little girl! Jesus, my mother's sick! Please, they need me."

I was contemplating. He could be lying, and the second I turn my back, he'd kill me. But if he _did_ have a family, I couldn't kill him. I narrowed my eyes. "Where's your group?"

"Are you crazy? You'll-"

Quickly, I slammed him into the nearest tree, pointing the machete at his heart. "You're in no position to say no. Tell me, or you die, and I'll find your family and slaughter them like the pigs they are!"

"A few miles from here! I- it's at an old truck stop! We have it barricaded, and we have guards! We have children! Please!"

I stepped away from the man. "What's the name of the truck stop!"

"I don't know! The sign was gone before we got there! I'm not even from here! I grew up in New Jersey! We've been everywhere! One of those things got my mom! She… I hid her from everyone-"

"How did she get bit?"

"We were with a larger group. We were leaving Philadelphia-"

I drove the machete into his heart, staking him to the tree. I rammed my hatchet into his skull, stepping back as my weapon fell to my side. These men were from Randall's group. And they might know where the farm is. I smacked my head, realizing I should have demanded the man tell me if there were scouts. No. They were on a supply run. I only knew this after I searched the men, taking everything I could and stuffing the items into my backpack. I had murdered two men, but I felt nothing. No remorse. Nothing.

I cleaned my bloody hands off in the stream, walking in the silence as the sun had begun to set. Once the farmhouse came into view, I stopped. How would I tell everybody?

And then it hit me.

I wouldn't.

**AN: Lucile Beatrice Grimes! You bitch, you! Hehe… She killed those men because I felt it had to be done to morph her into a stronger woman, even if it meant she goes full Shane. (You went full Shane. **_**Never**_** go full Shane!)**

**I'm interested into hearing what you guys think of Lucy's new personality. **


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